Battery beacon systems and methods of use

ABSTRACT

In an embodiment, a battery includes a housing, a power terminal, a power cell, a switch, and a circuit. The power cell is disposed within the housing, and the switch is disposed within the housing and is coupled between the power cell and the power terminal. And the circuit is disposed within the housing and is configured to receive a control signal from a source external to the housing and to control the switch in response to the control signal.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent Ser. No. 15/978,156filed May 13, 2018, which is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. patent Ser.No. 15/072,699 filed Mar. 17, 2016, which claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Pat. Appl. No. 62/309,368filed Mar. 16, 2016 and U.S. Provisional Pat. Appl. No. 62/136,285 filedMar. 20, 2015, all of which are herein incorporated in full by referencefor all purposes. This application is further related to U.S.Provisional Pat. Appl. No. 62/175,141 filed 12 Jun. 2015 titled “DevicesAnd Network Architecture For Improved Radiobeacon Mediated Data ContextSensing”, to U.S. Provisional Patent Appl. No. 62/260,313 filed 26 Nov.2015, to U.S. Provisional Patent Appl. No. 62/256,955 filed 18 Nov.2015, to U.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/967,339filed 13 Dec. 2015 titled “System Architectures and Methods forRadiobeacon Data Sharing”, and to U.S. Pat. No. 9,392,404 filed 10 Jun.2014 titled “Tracking device program with remote controls and alerts”,said patent documents being co-assigned at the time of filing and areincorporated herein in entirety for all purposes by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

An embodiment relates to smart batteries, radiobeacon networks ofbatteries, and to systems and methods enabled by battery:beaconcombinations.

GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND

We are increasingly surrounded by a “cloud” of electronic devices thatare network compatible and are capable of exchanging data and programswith the Internet. This has been termed the “Internet of Things” (IoT).To track or monitor each device in the IoT, very large numbers of uniqueidentifiers (UUID) may be needed, billions or trillions in fact.However, many devices are relevant only to one user or a group of usersin a local environment such as a living space or a work space. Thus theInternet of Things presents a level of complexity that increasingly hasbecome out of reach for most people, either as too difficult andtime-consuming to organize, too big, or too costly. The IoT is suitablefor large scale operations such as retail sales and inventory control(replacing in many cases RFID tagging) or urban environments (as in the“smart cities” concept), and for big science (such as environmentalmonitoring) but in order to penetrate home markets and smallerbusinesses, simpler systems are needed.

In addition, modern households contain large numbers of batteries usedto power electronic devices. Some are essential for safety, such as thebatteries that power portable smoke alarms and warn of potential firehazards, and batteries needed emergency situations such as a power loss,a heavy snowfall, a tsunami, or an earthquake. Merely inventorying thestocks of batteries on hand is not sufficient; batteries must also beroutinely tested and replaced as they reach the end of their usefullife. Ideally, results of any testing are electronically recorded andarchived, with appropriate notifications being sent to those responsiblefor their upkeep.

These systems are not readily implemented without obsoleting a wholegeneration of installed devices and consumer products. And wherenetworking is implemented in the devices, the needed communicationslinks require complex setup that is beyond the skill of the average userand programming or firmware that may be incompatible with newergenerations of mobile devices.

These combined problems call for a combined solution. Integrating alevel of intelligence into a battery is part of the answer, but anetwork communications system is also needed so that batteries can sharerelevant information with a user's smart device or a system operator'snetwork. Thus there is a need for a battery:radiobeacon system capableof assisting the consumer with managing battery operated distributedpower systems and serendipitously, providing tracking, locating, and asensor web for the user or for user communities. These and otherproblems are addressed by the invention described below.

SUMMARY

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This summary is not intended to identify key features ofthe claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid indetermining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

In a first embodiments of the invention, battery:radiobeaconcombinations are configurable by an individual user to help find lostobjects and monitor pets and the activities of small children orhospital patients. The tracking device is essentially a beacon in abattery, and is a comprehensive solution to locate, monitor and trackmissing pets, people, luggage, inventory, tools and items of interest,for example. In other embodiments the tracking device incorporatesvarious sensors and control mechanisms that make the tracking device aversatile multi-function device which can remotely inform or controlother devices such as smartphones, tablets, or computers. These trackingdevices, which we will term “smart batteries” or “battery:beaconcombinations” can also report on their own condition.

The devices are instrumental in shaping and creating a market for the“internet of things” by allowing a user or network of users toseamlessly share sensor data while providing a regional or globalpicture of environmental conditions such as temperature, movement, radiotraffic, trends in a particular area or simply a collaborative pictureof all cats (with collars) active in a particular city at a specifictime. The tracking device may have a speaker and a light emitting diodeas is useful for its original search and find function. A controlapparatus is associated with the tracking device. The control apparatusmay command the tracking device to emit an alert, including a buzz orflashing light. If a tracked object is inside a drawer or under apillow, the person searching for the object will hear the buzz or seethe flashing light. The control apparatus may also set its own alerts totrigger based upon the distance between the tracking device and thecontrol apparatus. Alerts can be based upon pairing the location of thetracking device to the alert so that alerts are only provided atpredetermined locales and/or predetermined times.

Embodiments of the tracking device conserve power and space. Theelectronics of the tracking device are carried on a circuit board insidethe battery housing. In some embodiments the battery may be wirelesslyrecharged with inductive or solar powered chargers but the batteries areotherwise readily exchangeable and relieve the load of disposablebatteries dumped in landfills such as by providing a subscriptionexchange market in which new “smart batteries” (having a radiobeacon andsensor combination in the battery housing with the power cell) areprovided for old.

The battery electronics include a local area, low energy transmitterthat has enough computing power to control sensors and the trackingdevice. A ceramic antenna is one option to further conserve space. Insome embodiments the sensors include a nine-axis accelerometer,direction, motion and a temperature sensor integrated with the encoder.Embodiments may omit GPS sensing circuitry in the beacon and rely on theGPS circuitry in control devices. Other embodiments may include GPScircuitry. Using one or more programs in a control apparatus, a trackingdevice can be set to trigger one or more alerts depending upon thedistance between the tracking device and the control apparatus and onother contextual data. Many such applications rely on current “Bluetoothstandards” and are Bluetooth low energy (BTLE) compliant.

The tracking devices are assigned to an owner-user who may grantprivileges to others for using the devices of the owner. The owner-usermay also have shared privileges with tracking devices of other users.Tracking devices may be associated in multiple network embodiments. In alocal network, a hub communicates with local tracking devices and relaystheir sensor outputs to a cloud/internet site. Multiple hubs can form awider area network that allows the hubs to communicate with each otherand triangulate the approximate position of each tracking device. In astill wider area network, tracking devices anywhere in the world can bemonitored by position, time of day, motion and any other characteristicor parameter sensed by the tracking device.

The embodiments described herein provide program instructions that areinstalled on a control apparatus and a network server. The computerprogram enables the control apparatus to detect tracking devices withinrange of the control apparatus and acquire control of the trackingdevice unless another control apparatus already controls the device. Thecontrol program also allows the user to retain privacy of informationcollected by a sensor package. Once set to private, only the controlapparatus or other designated apparatuses or individuals will haveaccess to data from the tracking device.

Devices, methods and systems are provided. Each device emits anintermittent radio frequency (RF) pulse having a formatted signal. Thesignal includes a UUID code consisting of a 128-bit word, more thanenough to include very, very large numbers of classes of devices, and amajor and minor code, each a 16-bit word, enough to encode a specificdevice identifier for more than 4 billion devices. However, the userdoes not need to actually handle this information, but instead canprogram each device by a simple proximity detection technique. Thus themethods and systems of the invention achieve a solution that overcomesthe potential complexity of the IoT, enabling the user to simply andconveniently manage a local private cluster and to network the clusterif desired.

The control program allows the user of the user to select at least onealert for a variety of contexts, particularly for example proximityrelated alerts. In order to trigger the alert, the tracking devicebroadcasts a radiobeacon signal via its local area, low energytransmitter or transceiver. The relative strength of the beacon signalis proportional to the proximity or “range” between the controlapparatus and the controlled tracking device. Relative signal strengthis a condition or argument for a distance alert notification, either toindicate close or far. If a control apparatus suddenly receives a beaconsignal of a controlled tracking device, the control apparatus mayindicate the device has returned to a location proximate the controlapparatus. Likewise, failure to detect a beacon signal of a controlledtracking device indicates the device is outside the range of the controlapparatus. As currently practiced, the control program provides afeature for selecting a map displaying the remote location of eachtracking device controlled by the network or smart device.

The tracking device may carry one or more sensors and each sensor mayoutput one or more signals representative of other conditions monitoredby the sensors. Other conditions include and are not limited to motionof the sensor in any direction or in a particular direction; temperatureand other signals representative of time, the geographic location of thetracking device or both, motion and other physical, biological orchemical conditions being monitored by sensors. As such, each conditionmonitored may be associated or paired with any other one or moreconditions to provide multiple conditions or “context” that must be metto trigger an alert. Context is provided not only from a combination ofdata from an individual sensor package, but also from other messagestaken in aggregate.

The beacon signal includes the identification information for thetracking device and may include a signal representative of the status ofthe battery. The monitoring systems of the invention are tools foralerting a user or group of users of a depleted battery condition beforethe condition becomes critical, such as when a battery-powered devicefails or enters an alarm state, for example a smoke alarm or aflashlight in an emergency kit. Because the radio pulses have a range(150 to 300 ft, or about 50 to 100 meters) that is proportioned for aliving or working space, a plurality of radiobeacons in the space aretermed a local private cluster (LPC). Local private clusters aretypically the property of an individual user or group and are used todigitally organize a living or working space, improving efficiency andsatisfaction through a “cloud of things” that are owned and operated byan individual or group. Advantageously, the hub, cellphone, or othercomputing device that receives the radiobeacon message may also includecommunications functionality for propagating messages from the LPC to awired or wireless network, such as an internet gateway, a local areanetwork, or a wide area network.

Structurally, the battery and radiobeacon share a common housing and canthus be considered a “battery:beacon combination or device”.Surprisingly, newer antennas may be built into integrated devices havingcentimeter or millimeter dimensions and may be shaped to fit on oraround the shell of a battery and even inside the housing. Printedcircuit boards are not required to be flat or regularly shaped, and 3Dcircuit support systems are readily designed to make the most ofavailable space.

Also included in systems of the invention is a network for operating thedevice(s), for receiving, recognizing and decoding any message(s), andfor making assessment(s) and notification(s) based on userpreference(s), system operator setting(s), and association(s) havingrules-based logic, such as may depend on the truth values for a seriesof predicates and what we shall call “contextual information” that isoften available as the result of message aggregation and trending,higher level functions of the network computing intelligence that makesuse of the data supplied in messages from radiobeacons.

The embodiments described herein provide one or more computer programsor “applications” that are installed on compatible “smart devices” andmay be updated periodically without the need to obsolete the existinghardware, the application(s) having the capacity to be operated on acompatible computing device so as to receive, recognize and decodemessages from the local area radiobeacon or the LPC. Thus the devicesmay increase in value due to software updates that improve for examplethe user experience and expand the range of functions the system canhandle.

We describe the invention in an initial series of characterizations. Anotification system is described as being representative; thenotification system comprises a) a low energy radiobeacon transmitterhaving, (i) a body with housing, said housing enclosing at least oneinternal power cell, said internal power cell having an anode and acathode, and electrical poles mounted on said housing, wherein saidpoles are configured to accept an external load; (ii) a printed circuitboard disposed in said housing, said printed circuit board comprising acircuit powered in parallel with said external poles, where said circuitcomprises a controller, a non-volatile memory element with instructionset embedded in said memory, a volatile memory element, a clock, aradiobeacon subcircuit, wherein said radiobeacon subcircuit comprises aradio signal generator configured as a local area, low energyradiobeacon configured to generate a low power message containing aunique identifier and at least one accessory data frame; (iii) anantenna operatively connected to said radio signal generator, saidantenna for broadcasting said message over a local area; and, b) a radioreceiver configured to remotely detect said broadcast message from saidlocal area, low energy radiobeacon transmitter, said radio receivercomprising a control apparatus or computing machine having programmableinstructions for associating said broadcast message with said uniqueidentifier, decoding said accessory data frame, and generating arules-based notification to a user.

In more detail, the local area low power message that is propagated intothe system is comprises a unique identifier, at least one accessorymessage frame, and a proximity, wherein proximity is defined by theproximate location physically associated with said beacon and said radioreceiver. The message is broadcast on at least one preset channel in theradio frequency range of 2.4 to 2.5 GHz or 5.1 to 5.8 GHz.

The notification system may also include at least one sensor, often asensor package is included. The system generally comprises a sensorhaving a sensor data output, and a subcircuit for inserting a sensordata output into a sensor value frame of said accessory message frame inresponse to a recurring scheduled task assignment or in response to atrigger.

These notification systems include a variety of sensors and theircombinations. Sensors are selected from (a) a motion sensor; (b) aglobal positioning satellite sensor; (c) an accelerometer sensor,including one, two, or three axis accelerometric package and optionalgyroscope and/or compass; (d) a touch switch status or action sensor;(e) a low voltage threshold detection sensor; (f) an overload detectionsensor (often a thermal sensor such as fuse); (g) a radio trafficdensity sensor; (h) a mesh network traffic sensor; and, (i) acombination of two or more of the above.

However, it is to be expressly understood that the Summary and theDrawings are for introduction, illustration and description only and arenot intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. The variouselements, features, steps, and combinations thereof that characterizeaspects of the invention are pointed out with particularity in theclaims annexed to and forming part of this disclosure. The inventiondoes not necessarily reside in any one of these aspects taken alone, butrather in the invention taken as a whole.

The elements, features, steps, and advantages of the invention will bemore readily understood upon consideration of the following detaileddescription of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which presently preferred embodiments of the invention areillustrated by way of example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The teachings of the present invention are more readily understood byconsidering the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is simplified view of a battery:beacon combination incommunication with the Internet via a “smart device”.

FIG. 2 is a more detailed view of inner workings of an exemplarybattery:beacon combination, including a tactile switch. Shown is a PCBwith parallel electrical contacts to the battery poles for drawingpower, a low-energy radiobeacon chip with RF oscillator circuit,controller and memory, and an antenna on the PCB.

FIG. 3A is a network view of a battery:beacon combination housed in aflashlight (on a keychain) and a system for making an Internetconnection through a smart device.

FIG. 3B shows a double-A battery (also termed a “pen cell”) ofconventional art; indicating the approximate dimensions.

FIG. 4 is a network view of a battery:beacon combination housed in asmoke alarm and a system for making an Internet connection through asmart device.

FIG. 5A is a simplified electrical circuit of a battery monitor device.

FIG. 5B is a Log plot of signal strength as a function of distance, asmay be used for RSSI proximity detection.

FIG. 6A is a rendering of a modified pen cell having an internal PCBwith local area, low-energy beacon and associated antenna.

FIG. 6B is a section view through the pen cell showing a “jelly-rollelectrolyte” coiled member (in section) and a part of a loop antennacomplex of FIG. 6A mounted on the rightward housing wall (behind andinsulated from the electrolyte).

FIG. 6C is a section view of a battery:radiobeacon combination withjacket-mounted patch antenna and rectantenna.

FIG. 7 is a view of a quarter wave fractal patch microstrip antennasized to operate in the 2.4 to 2.483 GHz range.

FIG. 8 shows the elements of a radiobeacon combination with microstrippatch antenna as assembled.

FIGS. 9A and 9B extend the concepts to 9 Volt disposable andrechargeable batteries. Two antenna configurations are shown.

FIG. 10A is another exploded view of a battery:beacon combination of theinvention—with PCB mounted radio transmitter, memory and programming,and an antenna mounted against a radiolucent battery housing wall. FIG.10B shows the top plate of the battery with positive and negative poles;FIG. 10C shows the underside of the top plate with positive electrodepost and negative electrode strip extending to the anode at the base ofthe battery.

FIG. 11 is a “coin cell” in section view, showing internal mounting of aradiobeacon and antenna with programmable controller and memory in anASIC-type integrated circuit.

FIG. 12A is a network view of a battery:beacon combination as part of asystem for linking tracking devices (each containing a coin-cellbattery:beacon combination) with a smart device in communication withthe Internet and with other smart devices.

FIG. 12B is a network view of a battery:beacon combination as part of asystem for linking tracking devices (each containing a coin-cellbattery:beacon combination) with a local hub for transmitting data to apersonal computer or directly to the cloud, where it can be shared withremote computing devices.

FIG. 13 is a view of an application for tracking a keychain, each ofthree positions corresponding to the motion of a person walking.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart of a method for tracking a person or a thingusing the battery:beacon combinations of the invention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic of a general device with internal battery havinga battery:beacon combination of the invention.

FIG. 16A shows how voltage monitoring can be used to schedule batterychanges before the battery cell fails. FIG. 16B is a schematic view ofmultiple smoke alarms (SAM) deployed in a household network and systemfor monitoring multiple batteries in the network.

FIG. 17A depicts data reporting in a network with two smart devices anda cloud-based administrative server.

FIG. 17B depicts data reporting (from three smoke alarms, SAM) in anetwork directed through a hub to a cloud-based administrative server.The data may be shared via wireless connections with multiple smartdevices and personal computers, for example.

FIG. 18 depicts a method of includes a setup subroutine and a monitoringsubroutine.

FIG. 19 is a cutaway view showing a toy teddy bear equipped with abattery:beacon combination of the invention.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram of a tool, in this case a glucose monitorused by a diabetic patient to maintain a steady blood sugar level.

FIG. 21A is an exploded view of a second embodiment of the invention,depicting a clip-on battery monitor in piggyback electrical contact witha disposable pen cell. FIGS. 21B, 21C and 21D provide added views of theclip-on device that operates in parallel with an external circuit orload.

FIG. 22A is a perspective view of a second on-board battery monitor.FIG. 22B is a side view. FIG. 22C is an end view of the battery monitordevice.

FIG. 23 is a schematic showing an embodiment in which battery rechargeis mediated by a radio antenna and rectantenna circuitry in the battery,or by a solar cell.

FIG. 24 is a schematic of a battery circuit with radioset in a batteryhousing. The radioset is in communication with a controller.

FIG. 25 is a flow chart describing the working of a smart battery withradio controlled kill switch.

FIG. 26A is a perspective view of a radiojacket that includes aprocessor, executable instructions, a radioset and a kill switch. Theradiojacket holds a battery in a battery sleeve. FIG. 26B shows how thebattery is seated in the radiojacket. FIG. 26C is a view of aradiojacket in which the battery sleeve is empty. FIG. 26D is a cutawayschematic showing a circuit built into the radiojacket to connect thecathode and anode through a kill switch under control of a radioset andprocessor. FIG. 26E is an end view of the radiojacket.

FIGS. 27A and 27B illustrate a clip-on radiobeacon containing a batteryand a detail view of the cathode interconnect through the kill switch.

FIG. 28 is a flow chart for using a battery in a radiojacket to controlpower to an appliance.

The drawing figures are not necessarily to scale. Certain features orcomponents herein may be shown in somewhat schematic form and somedetails of conventional elements may not be shown in the interest ofclarity, explanation, and conciseness. The drawing figures are herebymade part of the specification, written description and teachingsdisclosed herein. However, it is to be expressly understood that thedrawings are for illustration and description only and are not intendedas a definition of the limits of the invention.

GLOSSARY

Certain terms are used throughout the following description to refer toparticular features, steps or components, and are used as terms ofdescription and not of limitation. As one skilled in the art willappreciate, different persons may refer to the same feature, step orcomponent by different names. Components, steps or features that differin name but not in structure, function or action are consideredequivalent and not distinguishable, and may be substituted hereinwithout departure from the invention. Certain meanings are defined hereas intended by the inventors, i,e., they are intrinsic meanings. Otherwords and phrases used herein take their meaning as consistent withusage as would be apparent to one skilled in the relevant arts. Thefollowing definitions supplement those set forth elsewhere in thisspecification.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art to which this invention belongs. In case of conflict, thepresent specification, including definitions, will control.

“Batteries” or “cells”—include “primary batteries” selected from azinc/manganese dioxide cell, a Leclanche cell, a zinc/potassiumhydroxide cell, an alkaline cell, a zinc/mercuric oxide cell, acadmium/mercuric oxide cell, a zinc/oxygen cell, an aluminum/air cell, alithium cell, a lithium/liquid cathode cell, a lithium/solid cathodecell, a lithium/solid electrolyte cell, a lithium-ion cell, alithium-polymer cell, or a lithium/iron cell. Batteries are also definedby the terms a “secondary” battery and a “rechargeable” battery.Rechargeable batteries may be selected from lead-acid cells,cadmium/nickel cells, a NiCad cell, a hydrogen/nickel oxyhydride cell, anickel/metal hydride cell, an NiMH cell, a sodium/sulfur cell, anickel/sodium cell, a magnesium/titanium cell, a magnesium/lithium cell,an alkaline manganese cell, a nickel/zinc cell, an iron/nickel cell, aniron/oxygen cell, an iron/silver cell, or a redox cell more generally.The term battery may also be extended to include a supercapacitor. Moredetail is supplied at http://www.powerstream.com-/BatteryFAQ.html#ac,accessed in November, 2015.

“Depleted battery condition”—defines a state of a battery in whichvoltage has decreased from the nominal voltage as manufactured but notsuch that no voltage is available for low current draw. Generally a“replace battery” threshold voltage may be defined below which thedropoff in voltage is relatively steep and some electronic devicespowered by the battery may become unreliable. A “pre-alarm threshold”may also be defined in which voltage is slightly higher than the“replace battery” threshold but not so high as to be wasteful of batterylife (FIG. 16A).

“Radiobeacon”—is understood in this disclosure as a solid-state devicehaving only a transmit radio function, firmware to support pre-definedencoded pulse transmissions, a clock, and generally a voltage sensor orcomparator function. The radiobeacons of the invention also includecontacts having a form factor configured to make an electricalconnection with a battery and are thus each specific to a particularspecies of battery. The transmission is generally structured as anintermittent pulse, and encodes at least one unique identifier signalassociated with each individual beacon and at least one identifierassociated with a particular class of beacons, such as radiobeaconsassociated with a particular function or host system. The number ofpossible identifiers is dependent on the structure of the pulse. Uniquedevice identifiers may be 32-bit words for example; class identifiersmay be UUID signals, for example.

A local private cluster (LPC)—is a cluster of radiobeacons in proximity(at least periodically) to one or more radio receivers having at least alimited capacity to process programmable instructions and to broadcastor display an alert when an emission from a radiobeacon in the clusteris detected. If the radio receiver is mobile, the network may beestablished when the receiver comes into proximity to a radiobeacon thatis emitting a signal. Because the radiobeacon emissions areunidirectional (no on-board receiver is used) and is intermittent (tosave power), the LPC is not a network in a conventional sense of theword. In another sense, radiobeacons of a local private clustercommunicate with a larger network of computing machines viaunidirectional radio pulses and are not radio receivers.

A “hub”—is defined as a computing device having a capacity to detect apulse emission from a plurality of radiobeacons and is generallypositioned in proximity to a local private cluster. The hub may “host” alocal private cluster of radiobeacons. The hub includes a radioreceiver, a processor, a memory component, and program instructionsconfigured to detect pulse emissions and to activate an alert display orbroadcast an alert message when a radiobeacon emission from the localprivate cluster is detected. Generally the hub has the components of acomputing machine and may include wired and wireless communicationfunctions. In this way, LPCs may be shared with multiple users andmeta-networks may be joined, such as through an internet gateway, alocal area network, or a wide area network.

Broadcasts are termed “messages”—because they preferredly include a“data payload” having output from a sensor or sensor package associatedwith the radiobeacon.

“Cloud host” or “cloud host server”—refers to a cloud-based computingmachine having rules based decision authority to make notificationsaccording to a message data payload received from a user. In someinstances the cloud host may also cause machines to execute actionsbased on program rules. In this document, a symbol depicting a cloud andthe reference number 500 are metaphors for the Internet itself, forlocal area networks (LANs), for wide area networks, and for individualsites on the Internet where users may access cloud computing, and storeand retrieve programs and data.

“Five by five”—a radio term describing a very good quality of clarity ofa radio transmission.

“Local area”—is a term descriptive of radio reception within a range ofabout 300 ft from a broadcast origin, and indicates a “low energy radio”source, such as a source, as currently practiced, that meets a Bluetoothlow energy radiobeacon (BTLE) standard. Bluetooth standard channels aregenerally in the 2.4 GHz frequency band (2.412-2.472 GHz) and/or the 5GHz frequency band (5.180-5.825 GHz). WLAN IEEE 802.11b/g, IEEE 802.11aand IEEE 802.11n protocols define radios that are compatible, but otherrelated ISM bands may be used to avoid interferences or overlappingchannels if desired by modifying the radiobeacons and receiversaccordingly.

By this limitation in range, the local area, low energy (and low power)broadcasts associate themselves with a proximity or “range”, whereinproximity is defined by a proximate location, i.e., a distance betweensaid beacon and said radio receiver in which low energy radiocommunication is effective in conveying a message.

“Computing machine” is used in a broad sense, indicating a machine thataccepts information in digital or similar form and manipulates it for aspecific result based on a sequence of instructions. The computingmachine may include logic circuitry having a processor, programmablememory or firmware, random access memory, and generally one or moreports to I/O devices including one or more of a graphical userinterface, a display, a pointer, a keypad, a sensor, imaging circuitry,a radio or wired communications link, and so forth. One or moreprocessors may be integrated into the display, sensor and communicationsmodules of a monitoring system of the invention, and may communicatewith other microprocessors or with a network via wireless or wiredconnections known to those skilled in the art. Processors are generallysupported by static (programmable) and dynamic memory, a timing clock orclocks, and digital input and outputs as well as one or morecommunications protocols. Computing machines are frequently formed intonetworks, and networks of computers may be referred to here as “acomputing machine” In one instance, ad hoc internet networks known inthe art as “cloud computing” may be functionally equivalent to adistributed computing machine, for example.

“Cloud computing” relates in this context to any distributed network ofcomputing machines operating cooperatively in some aspect. A cloudsymbol in the drawings is a metaphor for the internet itself, for localarea networks, for wide area networks and for individual sites on theinternet where users may store and retrieve programs and/or data.

A “server” refers to a software engine or a computing machine on whichthat software engine runs, and provides a service or services to aclient software program running on the same computer or on othercomputers distributed over a network. A client software programtypically provides a user interface and performs some or all of theprocessing on data or files received from the server, but the servertypically maintains the data and files and processes the data requests.A “client-server model” divides processing between clients and servers,and refers to an architecture of the system that can be co-localized ona single computing machine or can be distributed throughout a network ora cloud.

“Processor” refers to a digital device that accepts information indigital form and manipulates it for a specific result based on asequence of programmed instructions. Processors are used as parts ofdigital circuits generally including a clock, random access memory andnon-volatile memory (containing programming instructions), and mayinterface with other digital devices or with analog devices through I/Oports, for example.

General connection terms including, but not limited to “connected,”“attached,” “conjoined,” “secured,” and “affixed” are not meant to belimiting, such that structures so “associated” may have more than oneway of being associated. “Electrically connected” refers to structureshaving a common or shared current path. “Digitally connected” refers tostructures enabled to share digital data, whether by hard wired,electrical, optical, optoelectronic, or wireless means.

Relative terms should be construed as such. For example, the term“front” is meant to be relative to the term “back,” the term “upper” ismeant to be relative to the term “lower,” the term “vertical” is meantto be relative to the term “horizontal,” the term “top” is meant to berelative to the term “bottom,” and the term “inside” is meant to berelative to the term “outside,” and so forth. Unless specifically statedotherwise, the terms “first,” “second,” “third,” and “fourth” are meantsolely for purposes of designation and not for order or for limitation.Reference to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” or an “aspect,” meansthat a particular feature, structure, step, combination orcharacteristic described in connection with the embodiment or aspect isincluded in at least one realization of the present invention. Thus, theappearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” invarious places throughout this specification are not necessarily allreferring to the same embodiment and may apply to multiple embodiments.Furthermore, particular features, structures, or characteristics of theinvention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or moreembodiments.

“Adapted to” includes and encompasses the meanings of “capable of” andadditionally, “designed to”, as applies to those uses intended by thepatent. In contrast, a claim drafted with the limitation “capable of”also encompasses unintended uses and misuses of a functional elementbeyond those uses indicated in the disclosure. Aspex Eyewear v MarchonEyewear 672 F3d 1335, 1349 (Fed Circ 2012). “Configured to”, as usedhere, is taken to indicate is able to, is designed to, and is intendedto function in support of the inventive structures as claimed ordisclosed.

It should be noted that the terms “may,” “can,'” and “might” are used toindicate alternatives and optional features and only should be construedas a limitation if specifically included in the claims to which theypertain. The various components, features, steps, or embodiments thereofare all “preferred” whether or not specifically so indicated. Claims notincluding a specific limitation should not be construed to include thatlimitation. For example, the term “a” or “an” as used in the claims doesnot exclude a plurality.

“Conventional” refers to a skill, device, apparatus or methoddesignating that which is known and commonly understood in thetechnology to which this invention relates.

Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the specification andclaims that follow, the term “comprise” and variations thereof, such as,“comprises” and “comprising” are to be construed in an open, inclusivesense—as in “including, but not limited to.”

The appended claims are not to be interpreted as includingmeans-plus-function limitations, unless a given claim explicitly evokesthe means-plus-function clause of 35 USC § 112 para (f) by using thephrase “means for” followed by a verb in gerund form.

A “method” as disclosed herein refers to one or more steps or actionsfor achieving the described end. Unless a specific order of steps oractions is required for proper operation of the embodiment, the orderand/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modified withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Although the following detailed description contains specific detailsfor the purposes of illustration, one of skill in the art willappreciate that many variations and alterations to the following detailsare within the scope of the claimed invention.

FIG. 1 is simplified view of a first exemplary battery:radiobeaconcombination 1 in communication with the Internet via a smart device.Throughout this description, the Internet is depicted as a cloud 500having a myriad of network connections accessed through wired orwireless portals. In this instance the portal is taken as a smart device10, such as a cell phone. A beacon signal 2 originates from thebattery:beacon combination (shown here in its “stand-alone” state) thatis received by the cell phone. The cell phone hosts programmingconfigured to interpret the beacon signal as a message. Standard beaconcommunications protocols are used. In this instance, for example, themessage contains universally unique identifier (UUID) value assigned bythe battery manufacturer to the particular battery:beacon combinationdevice 1. The message may also include a standard major value and aminor value, also termed major and minor frames, and added frames forsensor data, or data may be stuffed (i.e., by “bit overloading”) in anyof the standard frames as described earlier in co-assigned U.S. Prov.Pat. Appl. Ser. No. 62/175,141, titled “Devices And Network ArchitectureFor Improved Beacon Mediated Data Context Sensing”, which isincorporated herein by reference for all it teaches. These binarybitstreams are routinely decoded by standard smart devices and may beprocessed by “applications” executed by the device or may be routed to acloud server for added processing using contextual clues provided bysensor data in the message or aggregated data from other sources. Thesensor data payload may be as simple as a switch position on thebattery:beacon combination, or may include proximity information,voltage information, motion information, and so forth, any and all ofwhich serve to provide message context for triggering appropriateprocessing and execution of commands (such as a notification or display)by remote devices with more intelligence in the network than theradiobeacon alone.

Sensor data may include temperature, light intensity, smoke, voltage,sound, motion, displacement, acceleration, humidity, temperature,pressure, radiation, button-press stimulus event, open switch event,compass direction, proximity, GPS position determinations or rawsatellite data, radio traffic density, detection of compatible deviceswithin radio range, or other stimuli or sensor data, for example, and ismore generally termed “contextual content”, while not limited thereto.According to relationships and permissions established by the receivingdevice and/or network system, look-up results are processed to configurenotifications tied to the contextual content of the broadcast.Notifications to a receiving device and/or system are configuredaccording to contextual data (sensu lato) broadcast by the beacon andknown to the system.

FIG. 2 is a more detailed view of inner workings of a first exemplarybattery:beacon combination 1, including a metal-dome tactile switch 19such as obtained from Molex (Lisle, IL) or a membrane switch. Shown is aPCB 14 with parallel electrical contacts to the conventional batterypoles (12, 13) for drawing power 11, a low-energy radiobeacon chip 15with internal RF oscillator circuit, and an antenna 16 disposed on thePCB. Also included is at least one memory chip 18 for storing data andprogram instructions and associated hardware for supporting radiobeaconpulse broadcasts at about 2.4 GHz on a standard local area, low energyband have a range greater than 100 ft with this configuration of antenna16 as tested. The battery cells have a reduced aspect ratio to supportinsertion of the PCB inside the front face of the battery housing. Thebattery housing 17 is radiolucent. An outer coating of an elastomer isprovided over the touch switch 19 so that it may be operated with fingerpressure but remain sealed from moisture. After assembly, the top plate20 with electrodes 12, 13 is inserted so that electrical connections arepatent and the device is sealed around the upper rim 21. Batteries ofthis type have an output of about 500 mAh at a nominal voltage of 9V.Current draw for the radiobeacon is about 5 uA in sleep mode and spikesto 15 mA Peak Power for fractions of a millisecond in “advertising mode”on 3 channels. Pulse broadcast interval may be varied according toprogramming resident in the beacon circuit, but for example may be setfor one to sixty second intervals to minimize draw. By reducing emissionpower draw, any loss of range can be compensated by antennaoptimization, but for proximity-based sensing and location tracking, ashort range is preferable.

The multifunction button 1 initiates setup by pressing the buttion whena compatible host device (such as smart phone 10) is in radio proximityto the battery:beacon combination 1. The host device 10 is provided withan application and the application is programmed to receive the setupsignal when the button is pressed. The host will record the UUID of thesending device. Then, in the future, when the host device receives thatUUID again, its identity is recognized and an appropriate notificationmay be sent to the user. In addition, the smart device application mayinclude instructions to forward the battery UUID and message to a cloudserver 500, where added processing may occur. Detailed description ofthe use of systems of this type in locating or tracking lost items arefound in U.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/967,339filed 13 Dec. 2015, titled “System Architectures and Methods forRadiobeacon Data Sharing”, and U.S. Non-Provisional patent applicationSer. No. 14/301,236 filed 10 Jun. 2014, titled “Tracking Device System”,said patent documents being co-assigned and incorporated herein inentirety for all purposes by reference.

Briefly, multifunction button 34 is operable to perform one or morefunctions according to context and history. The button operates with oneor more control programs resident on a host device during setup ofalarms, to pair triggers, and if so enabled, to remotely controloperations of the host device. In this instance, the device functionswith a single-button multi-function interface to control system commandresponse(s) based on rules linked to button press patterns, long, short,duplexed and operated with Boolean statements about other variables,such as time of day, day length, user profile, traffic reports,emergency broadcasts, locations of friends, and weather forecast, forexample. On larger batteries, an array of tactile buttons may beinstalled.

FIG. 3A is a network view of a battery:beacon combination housed in aflashlight (31, on a keychain 32) and a system 30 for making an Internetconnection through a smart device 10. The Internet is indicatedsymbolically by cloud 500. The flashlight includes an ON/OFF switch 33,a button 34 operatively connected to the battery, and a standard LEDbulb 35 with lens.

A battery having an integrated radiobeacon is installed inside theflashlight. In use, the battery:beacon combination is enclosed insidethe flashlight housing, which is made of plastic so that radio emissions36 can reach compatible smart devices in proximity. The device is fittedwith a local area, low energy radio emitter without radio receptioncapability and “pairing” is not needed.

A variety of sensors may also be incorporated. Exemplary sensors senseenvironmental and physical parameters experienced by the beacon,including and not limited to temperature, light intensity, smoke, sound,motion, displacement, acceleration, humidity, pressure, radiation,button-press event, compass direction, or to report daylight levels,traffic levels, noise levels, NOX levels, and unusual noises such asgunshots or sirens, or self-reporting, such as reporting a low batterylevel, or other stimulus, sensor data, or environmental parameters,without limitation thereto. In some embodiments, a sensor package isbuilt into a core chip, and includes a combined multi-axis motion sensorand temperature sensor. The sensor has an accelerometer, a gyroscope,and a magnetometer for each axis. The information or “sensor data”output by the multi-axis motion sensor enables the receiver (i.e., ahost device such as a smartphone) to monitor and track the beacon as itmoves from one location to another. The motion of the beacon can bemonitored continuously as long as the receiver is close enough to be inwireless contact with a sensor package on board. As an alternative theinformation may be stored in a memory in the beacon and accessed later.thus the system is operative in cooperation with its softwareapplication(s) and its radiobeacon combinations to perform locating,tracking and monitoring of persons or things as described earlier inU.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/301,236, filed 10Jun. 2014, titled “Tracking Device System”, which is co-owned, but theradiobeacon is herein disclosed to be built into the battery, forexample as represented in FIG. 2.

Another sensor is provided in this example, a battery voltage lowthreshold sensor, as will be described in more detail with respect toFIGS. 16A and 16B, but also serves to alert the user to replace orrecharge a depleted battery. This information is of value for examplefor use with a flashlight or night-time road hazard display stored in acar. After long storage, the battery or batteries may become drained,and the battery:beacon of the invention is configured to trigger anotification on a viewer's smart device (under control of a suitablesoftware application) such that the user can replace the battery beforeit is too weak to perform its function. Other applications will bedescribed below, but one skilled in the arts will readily grasp thatbatteries capable of broadcasting battery status will find use inearthquake kits, camping gear, home use, smoke alarms, andbattery-operated tools where interruptions in power are undesirable andadvance notice of a low battery status is desirable.

The tactile switch 34 operates with one or more control programsresident on a host device during setup of alarms, to pair triggers, andif so enabled, to remotely control operations of the host device. Thoseskilled in the art will understand that a host device may be anyelectronic device with a processor, non-volatile memory for storingprogram instructions, and generally having wireless functionality, ascommonly found in modern smartphones, personal digital assistants,laptops, notebook computers, tablet computers, desktop computers, or anyequivalent device that can store and hold programs and data, executeprograms, receive and/or transmit information and commands via wired orwireless channels of communication.

Two way radio contact is unnecessary to perform these simplenotification functions in a system that is programmed to detect,identify, and decode messages from a battery:beacon combination of theinvention. However, where size permits, hardware for two-way radiocontact may be adapted for use in these battery:beacon combinations,such as for doing remote flash updates of software such that the devicewill increase in value as it receives the latest upgrades with added orimproved function and reliability, for example as in abattery-to-battery beacon mesh network.

FIG. 3B shows a pencil cell 3 of the conventional art, indicating theapproximate dimensions. This battery lacks a multifunction batterybutton and also lacks the needed circuitry and antenna forradiotransmission. Such batteries may contain a discharge overloadsensor, also termed a “circuit interrupt device” or more sophisticatedbattery management systems such as a “fuel gauge”, any one of which canbe incorporated, by following the teachings of this invention, as asensor such that the sensor output or “status” fed as data into a beaconmessage for communication to a smart device or a network system havingcompatible software. “Status” can be as simple as a truth valuecorresponding to an “open” or “closed” switch, or can be parametric suchas a temperature calibrated in degrees. More complex parametric datacaches may be related from the sensors using the encoder and radiobeaconof the inventive combinations.

FIG. 4 is a network view of a battery:beacon combination 1 housed in asmoke alarm in radio communication with a system 40 for making anInternet connection 500 through a smart device 10. The drawing depicts abattery:beacon combination 1 in electrical contact with a smoke alarm41. The smoke alarm is a conventional device and draws power from thebattery; the smoke alarm is shown in an inverted position so that thebattery receiving port 42 with hatch 43 is accessible. The on-boardbattery monitor includes a radiobeacon having a low power antenna andemits short messages 44 when a depleted battery condition is detected.

Miniature circuitry inside the battery, typically an integrated solidstate device, is used to periodically monitor voltage or power and todetect a depleted battery condition. The monitoring unit draws powerfrom the battery to send an intermittent radio pulse when actuated.

A smart device 10 is shown for monitoring and detecting the intermittentradio pulse or pulses when in proximity to the battery monitorradiobeacon. The smart device may be a cellphone for example, but is notlimited thereto. More generally, the monitoring system is contemplatedto use any computing device or network having a compatible radioreceiver and programming instructions for acting on a message having anidentifier (such as a UUID code) identifiable as assigned to thebattery:beacon combination.

Easy to use programming instructions are provided to translate themessage into a notification that is made at the convenience of the user.Advantageously, the program is set up to “map” the location of theaffected battery (with associated smoke alarm) in a location descriptionprovided by the end user, like “kitchen” or “guest bedroom”. One of theconveniences of a local private cluster is that the end user will beintimately familiar with the meaning of these locations without the needfor more detailed referents, GPS, triangulation, or other complexproximity sensing known in the art. Thus the solution to the problem ofmonitoring status of a plurality of batteries in a local area is reducedto its minimum elements (battery condition, location in a living orworkspace) and the location is graphically presented in a readilyaccessed notification at such time as the “pre-alarm” battery thresholdis crossed. By presenting the user with information that battery failureis imminent, the user may take corrective action before the smoke alarmgoes into an alarm state, but the actual “replace battery” alarm circuitand beeper wired into conventional smoke alarms are in no way disabled.

FIG. 5A is a simplified electrical schematic of a battery:beaconcombination 1. Some elements of the circuit may be realized in a solidstate chip 50 rather than assembled individually. Here an ASIC havingthe needed functionalities for making local area, low energy beacontransmissions is used. The transmitter/encoder may be a module, and anantenna 55 on the PCB (or in the battery housing) that produces atime-varying electromagnetic field, i.e., a radio pulse, that may beelectromagnetically coupled to a receiver antenna of a mobile computingdevice, hub, or other computing machine. On-board transmitters areavailable from a number of integrated device manufacturers and areavailable as SM devices for use with a suitable antenna.

The radiobeacon circuit takes power from the power cell 56 that is to bemonitored and is wired in parallel with the load. The smoke alarm itselfis an independent device and is indicated here by the term “LOAD”. Thatwould include the smoke detector sensor itself, an LED, a speaker, andalarm circuitry. Within the battery:beacon combination 1, a voltagemonitoring circuit may be modularized as indicated here by a series ofsensor modules S₁, S₂ . . . S_(N), (51, 52, 53) where S₁ may be a lowvoltage threshold detector, S₂ may be a thermal overload detector, andS_(N) may be tamper sensor, as a Hall Effect device mounted on the hatch43, for example. Alternatively some of the sensors may be integratedinto the chip. For example, by including a GPS sensor, the transmissionof the radiobeacon may include point-specific information that can bedirected to local fire responders through a cloud server that neversleeps. The chip 50 is set up to encode the sensor data content in aformatted message and to generate a broadcast according to a trigger orto a clock schedule.

Effectors may also be associated with the chip. Actuator 57 may be adevice for wirelessly activating a secondary alarm or system, such asfor turning on all lights in the house, or for activating an outsidespeaker so that the alarm condition is broadcast to the neighborhood.Similar circuit schematics are conceived for double-A batteries, wherethe battery or the host device (such as a flashlight) are equipped witha speaker or an LED, and actuator 57 is enabled to turn on the light orthe sound to assist in locating the host device during a search. The LEDmay be on the body of the flashlight, or the speaker may be in the wallof the flashlight housing, for example, for batteries having host unitsthat are made to be compatible.

This simplified block view includes a local area, low energy core device50. The core device includes a transmitter for sending radio signals andmay also be enabled for sending control signals. Optionally, the coredevice may be specified to include a transceiver for receiving data andcontrol commands. The core device generally includes a microcontroller,read only memory (ROM) supplied with a programmed instruction set,random access memory (RAM) sufficient to support rudimentary control, ormay be provided with firmware sufficient for basic functions. In currentpractice, integrated devices that support Bluetooth local area, lowenergy radiobeacon transmission protocols (BTLE) are used.

The core device 50 is assigned a unique identification code (UUID) andbroadcast at periodic intervals is programmed by the developer. Themaximum range of the radio broadcast is about 300 feet (˜100 m) aspresently practiced. Because of the low range, beacons are findingincreasing use as proximity sensors. FIG. 5B is a plot of signalstrength as a function of distance, as may be used for RSSI proximitydetection. A lower limit of detection 58 or maximum distance ofeffective transmission is shown.

Each beacon radio pulse may have a peak current of about 15-30 milliAmpfor a fraction of a millisecond. Current draw can be in the range of 6microAmp when not pulsing. Each pulse broadcasts an encoded identifiersignal, optionally with other data. In advertising mode, three or moreseparate frequency channels may be used in order to ensure that areceiver will pick up the signal.

“Proximity” or “range” is defined in FIG. 5B, which shows a typicallogarithmic attenuation of a radio signal (here in Db-m) as a functionof distance. For low-power antennas and radio transmitters operating inthe Bluetooth ISM band (either the 2.4-2.5 or the 5.0 to 5.4 GHz bands),this distance is measured in a few meters to tens of meters, and isgenerally less than 300 ft depending on the power, the antenna, and anyintervening structures. Power loss is proportionate to (λ/d)n, where dis distance. Thus the hardware establishes a local private clusterwithout the need for bidirectional network communication capabilityinvolving a complicated bidirectional “handshake” or “pairing”. Anynetworking capability is resident downstream in the network, includingcomputers, tablets, hubs, cellphones, and various computing means knownin the art. This simple arrangement ensures that smoke alarms may beretrofitted with an intelligent monitoring capacity without the need toobsolete the existing equipment and without large expense orinconvenience in setting up bidirectional networks.

The Bluetooth pulse emission is in the open, and can be picked up by anyproximate receiver tuned to the correct frequency and band. As currentlypracticed, the emission power and antennae of the battery:beacons of theinvention are configured to permit transmissions of more than 150 feet,up to about 300 feet (˜100 m), outdoors, and through walls within abuilding, as appropriate for networking local clusters or tracking byproximity. Thus the current draw required for battery:beacon monitoringis a negligible part of the total current stored in the battery and doesnot contribute to a reduction in the battery life.

Using existing radiobeacon technology, very large local clusters may beconstructed. Each radiobeacon has a dedicated identity. The currentpulse emission standard allows for a UUID signal differentially encoding4,294,967,296 individual device nodes. Thus a local cluster may be havemany independent devices and can satisfy the needs of an individual,institution or group having a common household, office or workspace.Groups having multiple living or work spaces may build multiple “localprivate clusters” (LPCs) without exhausting the pool of uniqueidentifiers needed to avoid confusion, as when operating a singleprogram application in multiple environments. The need for more complexaddress data, such as IPv6, is entirely avoided by using simpleunidirectional transmissions each uniquely identifying one of aplurality of radiobeacon identifiers in a local area.

In more detail, the Bluetooth communications protocol is as follows: Inthe most simple form, a radiobeacon is a local area, low energy deviceemitting an “advertisement mode message” following a strict format, thatbeing an Apple defined “iBeacon” prefix, followed by a variable UUID,and a major and minor value. The UUID is characteristic of the genus orclass of radiobeacons defined by the manufacturer, the paired frames ofthe major and minor value may be used to differentiate individualradiobeacons and thus may be associated with a location. In aunidirectional cluster, the user sets up a listening device andassociates the individual major and minor signal code of eachradiobeacon with a particular location in a local private cluster. TheUUID is typically a 128-bit word. Major and minor identifiers are each16-bit words as currently defined.

Compatible listening devices are programmed to listen for a UUIDbroadcast by a compatible radiobeacon. iOS devices with Bluetooth, smartdevices more generally, and for example Android systems, may receivetransmissions of this type and may be programmed to process theradiobeacon signals according to an application supplied with theradiobeacons or as part of a local private cluster kit that includes ahub for example and a plurality of radiobeacons. The radiobeacons signalsmart devices passing through their effective radio range and maytrigger a smart device action, depending on programming in the smartdevice. For example, the user will be referred to a cloud server andoffered content special to their profile. The hub may also detect beaconemissions from the mobile smart devices and may modify the outgoingmessage accordingly.

Another encoded identifier is a near field communications deviceconfigured for receiving unidirectional pulse emissions from aradiobeacon on a compatible frequency, where details of the technologymay be derived by study of US Pat. Publ. No. 2014/0304094 to Apple andrelated publications. The technical details of these publication and allreferences therein are hereby incorporated in full for all purposes byreference.

RFID and wireless systems may also be adapted for use in the systems ofthe invention provided adjustments are made to accommodate these oldertechnologies to a unidirectional active RF pulse transmission of aradiobeacon. The technical details of AU Pat. Doc. Publ. No.2012/101222, titled “Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) beaconincluding controllable signal direction and range” are herebyincorporated in full for guidance and for all other purposes byreference.

FIG. 6A is a rendering of a modified double-A battery 60 having abluetoothed low-energy beacon (internal) and an associated antenna 61sealed under a radiolucent “jacket” or cover 62. This is shown in amodified see-through view in FIG. 6B. Visible are the walls 62 of thecell, a top cathode plate 63, with gasket 64 separating the cathode fromthe anode 65, and an interior filled with “jelly-roll” electrolyticlayers 66 coiled as a cylinder. In this view, a rigid plastic housingserves as a wall around the entire electrolyte complex. A metal plateforms the bottom 72 anodic connector of the cell and is connected to thejelly roll by a central spindle pin. A conductive strip 67 a runs up theside of the housing to connect the PCB 68 to the anode. Antenna 61 isoutside the wall and under the cover layer 62.

The antenna is on the outside of the jelly-roll (shown here behind andinsulated from the electrolyte) and is insulated by a rigid plasticlayer. An added radiolucent outside layer forms the exterior of thebattery housing. A metal cathode (+, 63) and an anode (-, 67) are alsomarked. Electrical connections are as known in the art, with PCB 68being connected in parallel across the battery cell. Also shown is achip 50 a indicative of the local area, low energy radiotransmitter/encoder and associated memory functions (see FIG. 5A, 50).The transmitter is in electrical connection with antenna 61.

In 2016, almost 3 billion double-A cells were produced; most with acapacity of 2.8 Ah to 3.1 Ah. It is thought that the energy density willgrow to 3.4 Ah by 2017, offering the lowest cost per Wh in spite of thecylindrical design. The higher energy density of the cylindrical cellcompensates for its less ideal stacking characteristics. The empty spacecan be used for cooling to improve thermal management and thecylindrical housing has good mechanical stability and resistsdeformation. These cells are expected to be in use long into the future,and thus engineering of a smart battery having an embedded radiobeaconmakes good sense.

By adding a beacon function to the basic battery, several advantagesarise. First, as already indicated, the battery can report on itscondition. Secondly, the battery can help a user find it; the signalincreases in strength as the user approaches, and will appear to weakenif it is moving away. If the battery is installed in a camera or radiofor example, these “location and tracking” features are unchanged. Also,many of these batteries are rechargeable or can be recycled. The beaconfunction substantially enhances the value of what would otherwise be adisposable commodity; thus the user is motivated to engage suppliers ina subscription service offering “new batteries for old”. In addition,those batteries that end up in the trash, unless entirely dead, can belocated by their distinctive beacon ping, and can be extracted from theparamagnetic fraction using sieving, density sorting and a pick line.Thus the supply of rare earths and lithium in the battery waste streamcan be substantially reduced. Users who elect to exchange theirbatteries will benefit from receiving new batteries having the latestupgrades in energy management technology and smart sensing.

While the batteries are intended to reduce the quantity of batteriesthat end up in municipal waste streams, by building a bluetoothedradiobeacon into each battery that is sold, with an antenna as a layerin or outside the housing and covered by a radiolucent, wear-resistantjacket, the invention is poised to make a significant contribution to asustainable future at a minimal cost, perhaps 0.25 cents per battery.Municipal waste processor equipment may be outfitted with a radiobeaconsignal detector, and can direct sieving operations to recover thebattery fraction from mixed waste. Further recycling can then be done ina secondary sort, so that batteries of particular types aredistinguished by their UUID or by information in a major or minor frameof the transmission. Because bluetoothed broadcasts are low energy andthe battery can be supplied with a supercapacitor that stores a residualenergy supply, the radiobeacon circuits of the invention can wake upwhen interrogated and begin to broadcast a distinctive ping for severalhours, even if the electrochemical cell is fully exhausted.Advantageously, by layering the antenna in the housing wall (i.e., inthe external skin of the battery where the signal strength is best),valuable copper is relatively easily separated from the electrochemicalcells in the body of the battery.

The following figures are relevant in assessing battery recycling. Theannual world market for batteries is approaching $50B US. LiIONbatteries make up about $20B of this total, followed by NiMH and NiCdbattery types. At current market value, LiCoO metal in the batteries hasa value of $25,000 per ton and Nickel more than $15,000 per tonaccording tohttp://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/battery_recycling_as_a_business.The single unsolved problem in profitably recycling these batteries isthe difficulty of the sorting process, both as relates to recovery frommixed trash, and as to separation of batteries by their respectivechemistries. By providing a cheap radio transmitter in each battery thatbroadcasts a simple identifier, the solution to both problems becomesfully automated. But more importantly, the value of the battery to theconsumer vastly increases with little or no increase in cost, ensuringthat consumers will find new uses for rechargeable smart batteries longafter their original cost has been recovered, and hence are less likelyto discard them.

Ultimately, by using an RF energy harvester built into the skin of thebatteries of the invention, many batteries will find use in radio-noisyenvironments where they may be perpetually recharged, or so it will seemover years of function. A sketch of such a battery is shownschematically in FIG. 6C.

The view of FIG. 6C is a schematic in midplane section through a pencell battery 600 with anode 602 and cathode 604. The coreelectrochemical cells of the battery are not shown, but include anelectrical connection to the anode and a parallel electrical circuit forpowering a processor and logic circuitry (suggested here as a PCB, 606)mounted under the cathode. This circuit may include battery monitoringsensors as described below. While not shown, the PCB will also include aradiobeacon. And in this case, a supercapacitor 608 is mounted below thePCB to provide reserve energy when activated during a recyclingoperation. Also supplied is a vent 610 and provision for cooling andexpansion. The housing includes a rigid shell with chassis (not shown)generally of a stiff plastic. Several components are layered onto theshell, either on the inside or the outside wall of the shell. Aradiolucent jacket 612 is applied over the shell and any externalcomponents as an insulator and sealant that resists wear and abrasion.

The wall structure is unique in that functional layers are included.Shown here is a slot patch antenna with microstrip driver 620 anddielectric ground 616. The microstrip inductively drives a surfaceelectromagnetic wave in the overlying patch plate to generate a radiopulse that emanates out from the wall. Patch plates may be arrayed asneeded on rounded surfaces and may be miniaturized by techniques knownin the art such as use of fractal patterns. The microstrip driver isconnected electrically to a radiosignal generator on the PCB 606. Theground 616 is also connected to the PCB. The patch plate is mounted inspacer material under the radiolucent jacket.

In this embodiment, the battery also includes a rectantenna used toharvest RF energy from the environment around the battery. Therectantenna may be part of a circuit, termed here a “rectenna” 624 thatrectifies alternating current flow in the rectantenna, steps up thevoltage, and delivers DC power to recharge the battery from any wasteoscillating electromagnetic fields in the vicinity. By placing thebattery in proximity to household AC lines, for example, the battery hasthe potential to operate long past its nominal charge capacity. Similarcapacity to harvest RF energy exists in many public places and nearpower transmission lines. Thus these batteries are inexpensive but quitevaluable in minimizing carbon footprint while delivering on the promiseof the IoT.

However, some batteries may be discarded by mistake or by habit duringthe transition to a sustainable future. The same features that make thebattery valuable to the consumer also permit automated battery recoveryfrom trash. To identify the battery in a waste stream, the patch antennalayered in the outside wall of the battery housing can be driven by asignal generator under control of the core processor, and power isgenerally provided by the electrochemical battery, but for use in trashrecovery, a supercapacitor 608 may be provided next to the radio signalgenerator of the battery, and the supercapacitor is activated (connectedin parallel across the radio signal generator) to supply a beaconbroadcast “ping” when the processor receives a specific command fromtrash processor equipment. The distinctive beacon ping can be used todirect a magnetic claw to the site of the battery. The battery may beprovided with a paramagnetic chassis or cap so as to be magneticallyextracted from the trash stream. Use of the supercapacitor as a reserveenergy supply ensures that the battery can be recovered even if theelectrochemical cell is completely depleted.

FIG. 7 is a view of a quarter-wave “fractal patch” “microstrip” antenna70 sized to operate in the 2.4 to 2.483 GHz range. The patch antenna ora patch array may be configured to wrap around the battery housing,either with a double-A pen cell or a box-shaped 9V battery form factor,under a radiolucent exterior layer. The microstrip 71 is low noise, andis connected to the radio pulse generator (or receiver). While not shownin detail, these antennae benefit by breaking the conductive surfaceinto a fractal pattern for greater efficiency. A substantial body ofantenna engineering has developed to aid in their design. Surprisingly,the capacity to transmit when wrapped around a pen cell is not aproblem. The diameter of a double-A cell is only a little more than acentimeter, and a 3 cm patch antenna takes up almost the entirecircumference when conforming to the cylindrical wall of the housing. Insome instances these can be printed in place in layers. Three layers arerequired, the patch layer, ground layer, and dielectric substrate layerthat separates the patch and ground. An inset microstrip or striplinefeed carries the signal to the patch layer and the generated EMFoscillates in fundamental mode between the two plates. A complementarysplit-ring slot resonator (CSRSR) and an interdigitated capacitor may beinserted in the microstrip patch construct. Slot patch antennas designedto operate at the preferred Bluetooth 2.4 GHz frequency are known in theart and have been reduced to the size of a sidepanel of a 9V battery.Fractal designs are known to result in even more compact antennaconfigurations.

FIG. 8 shows assembly of a battery:beacon combination 80 with patchlayer 81 with microstrip lead 71. The structure includes a core of coincells 81 in contact with an anode 83 at the bottom and a cathode 84 atthe top. A PCB 85 containing the required radiobeacon and any batterymanagement circuitry is mounted under the cathode and attaches to themicrostrip lead 71. The patch antenna consists of the patch layer 81combined with dielectric layer 86 and ground layer 87. The antenna iselectrically connected to the pulse generator of the radiobeacon, havingon-board circuitry for generating a programmable radio beacon pulseunder control of an encoder and processor on the PCB. Because theradiobeacon is wired in parallel, radio pulses may continue to be senteven when the positive and negative poles of the battery are not part ofa closed circuit. The microstrip is attached to the pulse generator ofthe circuit board before sealing the battery housing. A radiolucentprotective coat 88 may then be applied over the patch layer of theantenna.

FIGS. 9A and 9B extend the concept of a battery:beacon combination (90,91) to 9V disposable and rechargeable batteries that are typical sold ina box-shaped housing with positive and negative poles (+,−) on top. Inpreferred embodiments, the radiobeacon and battery management functionsare integrated in a single chip or ASIC on a single PCB 93 withsupporting circuitry and sensors. An antenna is connected to thecircuit, but is generally positioned so as to avoid the metallic partsof the battery and as shown here is disposed on the front wall of aplastic housing 94.

In FIG. 9A, a simple folded antenna 95 is used having a length of about3 cm. Lengths of up to 6 cm are readily configured within the formfactor of a 9V battery housing, corresponding to a half-wavelengthantenna for standard 2+ GHz Bluetooth emissions and a one-wavelengthantenna for the sister 5+ GHz Bluetooth band. In FIG. 9B, a quarter wavemicrostrip patch antenna 96 is used. Both antennae are enclosed within aradiolucent housing.

In a preferred embodiment, the antenna is sized for emission in the 2.4to 2.483 GHz range. Antenna size may be calculated as λ/4 for a firstcut. A loop antenna is shown for illustration, but the invention is notlimited thereto. Alternative antenna configurations include dipoleantennae, loop antennae, and ceramic antenna, which are sometimes chosenfor their compactness. A typical ceramic antenna may take up only 20% ofthe space occupied by a loop antenna. These antennas have uniqueproperties and are available in requisite dimensions of 1-2 mm.Dielectric resonant antenna materials having suitable dielectricpermittivity produce radio emissions when excited by a monopole feedstrip or other oscillator. They have found use as on-board microantennas if sufficiently insulated from proximate paramagnetic surfaces.Further details about the technology are found for example in non-patentliterature such as an article titled “Dielectric Materials for CompactDielectric Resonator Antenna Applications” as accessed on the interneton 12 Mar. 2015 and incorporated herein in full by reference.

FIG. 10A is an exploded view of a battery:beacon combination 100 of theinvention with PCB mounted radio transmitter 101, memory andprogramming, and an antenna mounted on a radiolucent battery housingwall. A stack of power cells 103 forms the core of the battery. Alsoshown is a separate battery management PCB 104. Typically the uppermostPCB is configured to support a fuse that prevents battery overload butmay also include battery management and circuit interrupt functions.Unlike ordinary fuses, these polymeric devices typical regainconductance when they cool. Most lithium and nickel-based cylindricalcells include a positive thermal coefficient (PTC) switch. When exposedto excessive current, the normally conductive polymer heats up andbecomes resistive, acting as short circuit protection. Once the short isremoved, the PTC cools down and returns to conductive state. Batteryfuel gauge circuits are also used. With miniaturized circuitry, thebattery management functions and the radiobeacon function may beintegrated onto a single PCB (or other circuit supporting member).

The battery stack is capped at the top with a insulative plate 107configured to support the cathode and anode (+,−) and sealed at thebottom with an insulative plate 105 a that may be part of the housing ormay be a conductive material linked to a conductive strip 105 b thatjoins the voltaic stack 103 to the anodic pole on top (and completes theparallel circuits running through the PCBs). Because the battery cells(appearing here like a pile of bricks) are typically housed inconductive metal sheaths, the cathode must connect, directly orindirectly, to the uppermost surface of the voltaic pile. The cathode(+) is shown here with an electrically conductive post 106 extendingthrough a pair of PCBs to the top of the voltaic pile.

FIG. 10B shows the top plate of the battery with positive 108 andnegative 109 poles; FIG. 10C shows the underside of the top plate withpositive electrode post 106, insulative plate 107, and negativeelectrode strip 105 b that forms a connection to the anode at the baseof the voltaic pile 103.

Returning to FIG. 10A, dashed lines indicate how the voltaic pile andassociated PCBs and antenna are inserted into a plastic housing 105. Awall of the housing is turned down to demonstrate the insertion moreclearly. The housing is generally of a rigid but radiolucent materialand may have reinforcing ribs and thickness to meet mechanicalrequirements for routine use.

FIG. 11 is a “coin cell” 120 in section view, showing internal mountingof a radiobeacon chip 121 and antenna 122 with programmable controllerand memory in an ASIC-type integrated circuit on a PCB 123. Thesecircuits may be potted with a black epoxy if desired to prevent copying.The batteries contain a zinc anode 124 and a solid electrolyte cathode125 separated by a solid electrolyte barrier 126. The electroactivecompounds are housed in a cathode can 127 and sealed by an anode can 128with a insulating gasket 129 between the two so that a circuit is formedonly when a load is attached between the anode and the cathode. But thePCB is linked to the power supply in parallel and for a small currentdraw, can make intermittent radio broadcasts on a local area, low energyband. Also included is an antenna. The device emits regular digitalradio pulses that include a UUID, and optionally other frames,preferredly at least some sensor data.

Another type of cell is the “prismatic cell” which is layered in achocolate bar shaped can, having aluminum cans around individuallylayered electrolytic cells, with capacities of 20-30 Ah, such as forelectric vehicles. Smaller versions are seen in cell phones and tablets.Any of these may benefit from an on-board radio beacon as describedabove.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are network views of a battery:beacon combination aspart of a system for linking tracking devices (TD₁, TD₂, TD₃) with asmart device 10 in communication with the Internet 500 and with othersmart devices 10 a. In FIG. 12A, the radiobeacons are part of coin cellspowering the tracking devices 131, 132, 133, which are each linked tokeychains or other similar personal possessions, the details of whichare not important, and are intended to assist users in keeping track oftheir possessions and locating them when needed. Similarly, trackingdevice 133 could be inserted in a wallet, or pinned to a child's belt.The possibilities are not limited.

These tracking devices have a large range of uses. Sensor networks mayalso be formed from tracking devices having battery:beacons of theinvention, and may be used to report environmental information, motion,and so forth, so that when linked into larger networks, may form anearthquake warning system, for example, or alert users to a traffic jamahead, or help locate a missing child or pet, and could be detected byan Amber Alert system for example.

Users begin by establishing a direct association between a deployment ofthree beacons TD1, TD2, TD3 (131, 132, 133) and a host device, here afirst smartphone 10. Any network alerts are conveyed to the cloud 500from the smartphone, or may be shared with a second smartphone 10 a of afriend. In this system or network 130, each beacon is paired with thehost device 10 of an owner. While a smartphone is shown, the host devicemay be a computer, a tablet, or other personal computing device. Thehost device has a transceiver for establishing a wireless connection tothe cloud 500, representing here a portal to the Internet. The hostdevice 10 may create one or more alerts (also termed “notifications”)based on the relative location of the host device, the beacons, and anysensor data (including input “stimuli” generally) received from thebeacons. For example, this system 130 may be tasked to find a lostobject having an associated beacon, to set an alert for when an object,pet, or person bearing a beacon moves into or out of one or morepredetermined proximity ranges, and to pair alerts with locations ormotions of the beacons (131, 132, 133) in this simple deployment. Theowner-user may share information transmitted by the beacons with others,and may control or share control the beacons. Accordingly, in anotheruser with a second host device 10 a may be given permission to use thesame beacons to establish alerts on the second host device that aredifferent from or shared with those alerts created by the first user onhost device 10.

The system 130 may remind a user to take along needed personal itemsbefore leaving a current location. Beacons would be attached to a keyring, a laptop or tablet computer, a briefcase, a purse, a wallet, asuitcase, a backpack, or other personal items. The user will carry thetracked items during travel. If the user departs a location and forgetsone of the tracked items, an alert will sound on a host device 10alerting the owner not to leave without it. Such alerts may be paired tospecific locations (i.e., are context sensitive) so that they are onlytriggered when and where the user wants.

Inertial sensors may be included to refine the alerts. If all personalitems in a cluster are moving in the same direction with the sameinertial velocity as the user, then reasonably the user is carryingthem. But if one item is stationary, or is moving in another direction,the user is quickly alerted to backtrack and find the lost item.

The core device (chip 50) of each battery:beacon has a clock or iselectronically connected to a clock. The beacon signal in any signalfrom a sensor in the beacon may be tagged with time sent. The clock mayalso be used to extend the life of the battery. If battery voltage issensed as low, the beacon may be put in power saving mode, including acommand to power up when the user begins moving or an ambient light isdetected. Thus sensor data can serve in making contextually relevantnotifications to a user. Here the user's device and beacon constellationpower up and fire off an alert if anything is left behind.

The system 130 may also generate an alert when an item has returned. Forexample assume a beacon is attached to an automobile operated by anothermember of the user's household. When the driver of that automobilereturns home, the beacon will trigger an alert in the user's host deviceand may push a notification to the user that the automobile is now inthe driveway. Similarly, the return of the cat looking for dinner can beannounced to the household through a shared user alert to devices 10 and10 a.

FIG. 12B is a network view of a battery:beacon combination as part of asystem 134 for linking tracking devices (each containing a coin-cellbattery:beacon combination) with a local hub 138 for transmitting datato the cloud, where it can be shared with remote computing devices, ordirectly to an owner's personal computer 139 c. In this exemplary view,a system 134 and network having three tracking devices (TD₁, TD₂, TD₃;134, 135, 136), a smart device (identified here as a “hub” 138), anoptional computing device 139 c, a cloud-based cloud host server 500,and three client devices (10, 139 a, 139 b). Battery:beacon combinations(134, 135, 136) are in bidirectional wireless communication with hub138. In this instance, each radiobeacon circuit includes a transceiverfor sending and receiving messages, a controller, memory containing alimited instruction set, a clock for datestamping received messages, andan antenna. Optionally, the hub 138 may be connected to a gatewaycomputing resource 139 c that in turn is connected to the cloud host500. In some embodiments, the hub 138 is directly connected to thecloud, bypassing optional desktop gateway. The hub 138 listens forsignals (i.e., messages) from the tracking devices. The hub has abluetoothed radioset or other wireless communication apparatus and cansense the range of any compatible radiobeacon within its effectivefield. Upon receiving signals from one or more radiobeacons, the hubrelays the UUID identifier information and any sensor payload associatedwith the message to the cloud host server. Likewise, the hub may sendcontrol information received from the owner via the cloud host server toeach or all the tracking devices (134, 135, 136). For example, reportsand updates may be sent to a remote computer 139 a, a tablet 139 b, oran owner's smartphone 10. Similarly, the smartphone, tablet or computermay be used to send commands to one or more of the tracking devices viahub 138. Commands received from the host by the hub are downswitched toa Bluetooth compatible antenna at a frequency in the Bluetooth band fortransmission to a battery-mounted radiobeacon (134, 135, 136) having atransceiver. The operation of the transceiver is essentially asdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/967,339 titled “SystemArchitectures and Methods for Radiobeacon Data Sharing”, filed 13 Dec.2015 (see FIG. 7B, radiobeacon 80), but according to the teachings ofthe present invention, the transceiver is mounted in the battery, notthe host device. Internet client 139 c (shown here as a desktopcomputer) is optional if hub 138 is equipped with a wide areatransceiver communicatively compatible with an internetwork portal. Thustracking devices fitted with radiobeacons may also have radiotransceiver capability.

These embodiments of networks rely on integrating multiple radiobeaconsand bluetooth devices into an ad hoc network by providing an application(i.e., a rules-based instruction set comprising software and/orfirmware) configured to recognize bluetoothed radio signals of aparticular class and effect notifications or actions based on programmedinstructions by forwarding those particular signals to a cloudadministrative server. In this way, a smart device (e.g. a smartphone)does not have to directly control the radiobeacons. All radiobeacons foran owner are registered in the hub 138 and correspondingly on the hostserver, and hence can be securely accessed from a smartphone or othersmart device anywhere in the world. The registered radiobeacons can beused for home security, tracking lost objects, automation, or playinggames with friends across the world, without limit thereto. Astransceivers, these tracking devices (134, 135, 136) may also functionas nodes in a mesh network.

FIG. 13 is an animation view of a person 140 walking, the person havingpossession of a penlight apparatus 141 on a keychain, in which theapparatus 141 is essentially as described in FIG. 3A, and contains abattery:beacon combination. In each time snapshot T₁, T₂, T₃, thebattery:beacon combination in the penlight transits a defined path(MOTION, dashed heavy arrow) so as to come into radioproximity with aseries of three smart devices (142 a, 142 b, 142 c). Each smart devicedetects and registers a Bluetooth message (143 a, 143 b, 143 c) from theradiobeacon in a time sequence T₁ through T₃, and upswitchinglytransmits a broadband wide area message in real time (145 a, 145 b, 145c) to a cloud server 500, which in turn may initiate a commandtransmission to a smart device 200 in a remote location 149. In thisinstance, here remote hub 200 may be programmed to command a remotemachine 300 to execute an instruction and monitors that the execution ofthe command was completed (double-headed arrows). The command to machine300 can be as simple as an instruction to turn on a hot tub or a porchlight because the owner 140 is almost home, and the hub 200 can reportstatus to the cloud server, where it is accessible for the owner'sinspection by opening his account screen on a smart phone, and so forth.

Many more applications can be envisaged. Radio signals are indicated atthree times T₁, T₂, and T₃, each corresponding to a point in time and aposition in the right-to-left path of the walking figure 140. Eachmessage may contain updated sensor content reflective of time anddistance travelled. The cloud host server may use this information totrack the battery:beacon combination in device 141, which in thisexample is a pen light attached to a keychain that has been unknowinglycarried away by an individual 140 in a borrowed jacket.

The messages may also include other sensor information, such asmicroclimate indicators, detection of noises, heart rate, walking pace,insolation, and direct or indirect indicators of proximity and location.Data on fitness (such as accelerometry data) can be cached, or sent fromthe tracking device 141, and entered in a user's exercise log, forexample.

In some instances, permission may be in place to engage smart devicehardware services. For example, local hub or smart device 200 mayinclude a virtual machine accessory video camera either integral to thedevice or separately linked to a USB or wireless camera, either at home,or on a headband or a pair of smart glasses worn on the head of a user.The video can then be streamed to the cloud, and according to userpermissions in an administrative server, forwarded to one or moredisplay stations or websites to help track the errant keychain or checkup on the household. This could be important when the person carryingthe radiobeacon 141 has left their medications at home, or is missingand needs to be found. In another instance, the operator of smart device142 c could be invited to approach walking figure 140 and offerassistance. Thus a community network is established and includes “goodSamaritans” who have downloaded the needed software to their smartdevice.

Roles may be reversed, smart device 200 may interchangeably insertitself into ad hoc networks by proximity to the radiobeacons of others,and serve as a shared community resource—either way, all community smartdevices will reciprocate in upswitchingly transmitting data from aradiobeacon to the cloud. This network is based on microcircuitryinserted into battery:beacon combinations that power the various smartdevices.

Hub device 200 may also function as a radiobeacon, or may signal thecloud server 500 to request devices 142 a, 142 b and 142 c report theirlocation so as to track the person 140 carrying radiobeacon device 141.Generally the messages are very short and result in a minimal load onthe network. In other cases, some devices may have permission to permitsharing of foreground resources such as GPS location that can be used totrack the keychain (or the missing person) or even to push asolicitation for aid to one of the passersby, indicated here as carryingsmart device 142 c.

In some embodiments, the radiobeacon 141 may carry its own GPS deviceand broadcast its latitude and longitude coordinates in the message(i.e., as a geostamp), accompanied by a timestamp. In other embodiments,the radiobeacon message may be stamped with the GPS coordinates of anysmart device that participates in systems such as shown in the precedingfigures and is within an effective radio contact area of anyradiobeacon. In still other embodiments, the location of one smartdevice may be paired with proximity and range to the battery:beaconcombination installed in pen light 141. For example, in the system shownin FIG. 13, the smart device 142 a provides a location using its GPSfunction and pairs that location with the proximity of device 141 andthe time of contact. The pen light 141 with battery:beacon combinationthus is a sophisticated “radiotag” when attached to or carried bychildren, pets, property and so forth. The smaller tags shown in FIG.12B (tracking devices 134, 135, 136) function in the same way. Any ofthe tags can be used to map a path taken by individual 140 and project adestination or an intercept.

Device 200 may be a smart pad for displaying a map. The map may be aninteractive map and may include a voice overlay or data overlay. Mapsmay include aggregate data, such as traffic, radio traffic, tremors,fog, crowding, or special offers, sites of interest, meeting places, andso forth and the path of a radiotagged object being tracked by itsbattery will be updated on the map display.

Where timestamps and geostamps can be aggregated, the host notificationmay include a tracking feature whereby a plurality of recent “fixes” onthe location of a lost object are visually displayed in the form of atrail or track over time superimposed on the map. The “track” may alsoinclude an extrapolation of at least one future position or a compositeshowing the locations of one or two friends who in position to intersectthe track ahead of the lost object, thus potentially recovering it byactivating a audible alarm in the penlight when in close range.

On receipt, compatible smart devices will register each message and adda timestamp (and a geostamp when available). Conventionally thisinformation is then discarded if the smart device determines that nopolicy or rule associates the message with the owner of the device;however, by installing an application of the invention in a smartdevice, the smart device acquires capability to access a cloud host ofthe invention, and message policies will include instructions forprocessing and rebroadcasting third-party messages in background (butwhere the message contents remain anonymous, occult, and encoded so thatthe owner of the “proxy” device is not notified or permitted access tothe message contents without special permissions). At the end of theupswitching process, no record of the contents of the message can beretrieved from the proxy smart device and encryption may be used asknown in the art to ensure privacy, whereby only the cloud host serverwill decrypt the message. The broadcast forward, however, includes theoriginal data payload of the message, a timestamp as received, and anetwork address for the cloud host, so that it can be routed to thecloud host server. Based on ownership of the radiobeacon as determinedfrom the original message contents, and on sensor data in the message,along with any contextual information that is relevant, the cloud hostserver accesses a database or instruction sets, determines a userpreference or an administrative preference for some appropriate actionin response, and initiates the pre-configured action, for instance,instructing a remote machine or machine system to execute an action thatthe owner has requested according to the time, place, context, and/orany condition reported in the sensor data.

In other instances, the cloud host server 500 will take collectivelybeneficial action, such as by sharing a map showing aggregated dataindicating updated traffic conditions, or alerting users according totheir profile of any events of interest. The actions can range fromcalling an emergency operator in the event that the radiobeacon detectsand reports data consistent with a vehicle accident or injury, oractuating a camera, or lowering a window in an overheated vehicle, orunlocking a car without using a key, helping a user find their lostkeychain with their cellphone, helping find their lost cellphone (usingthe radiobeacon in the cellphone) with their keychain tracking device,or displaying a map on a smart pad, the map having an overlayer ofaggregated local microarea weather data collected from multipleradiobeacon-associated sensors making transmissions picked up by smartdevices.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart of a method for tracking a person or a thingusing a battery:beacon combination 1 of the invention in operativecommunication with a network system having at least one deviceconfigured with compatible instructions for operating the network. Themethod includes a SETUP function and a MONITOR function and is operatedon a smart device 10 for example. During setup, the beacon trackingapplication of a smart device 10 a is actuated and setup is run todetect 153 proximate battery:beacon devices 50 a by receiving broadcast151. The detected device 50 a is entered 154 in a look-up table by UUIDand given a nickname and location (if installed to be stationary). Thedata is then saved 154 and can be shared with other smart devices.During the MONITOR phase, when an RF pulse is detected by a smartdevice, the device reads 155 the UUID of the beacon, and determines 156whether it is in the look-up table or not. If identified as co-owned orshared (YES, 157), any message associated with the transmission is readand decoded.

An instruction set is accessed 158 and according to the data andcontext, any action is taken, often including sending a notification tothe user. In addition, the message, particularly if not recognized asbeing co-owned or shared, can be forwarded 159 to a cloud administrator.At the cloud administrator, the UUID will again be compared with listsof subscribers and action taken if rules-based programming parametersare met.

FIG. 15 is a schematic of a general host device (LOAD) with internalbattery having a battery:beacon combination of the invention. Thecircuit 160 includes a voltaic pile 161 and a load 162 in series. Theradiobeacon subcircuit is connected in parallel and includes core chip163 (with encoder and messaging function), an oscillator 165 forgenerating an RF signal, and an antenna 164. In this example, alsoincluded is a sensor 166.

The beacon signal includes the identification information for thebattery:beacon device and a signal representative of the sensor dataoutput. A program application in a monitoring device such as a hub orsmart phone may be used to identify the signal by the beacon identifierin the pulse and to deduce the location of the device from a look-uptable set up by the user or from proximity data in real time.

Basic circuit components of a battery:beacon combination (installed in adevice constituting a load) are identified. Circuit components include acore encoder and signal generator integrated circuit or “chip” 163. Thechip generally includes an integrated microcontroller, read only memory(ROM), random access memory (RAM) sufficient to support rudimentarycontrol, or may be provided with firmware sufficient for basicfunctions, and generally includes a clock and at least one sensor, suchas an IO port connected to the multifunction button 19 describedearlier. The circuit may also include an environmental sensor 166. Forsome applications, a removable flash memory device may be incorporated.The memory device may tabulate data collected by sensors mounted in thedevice for later retrieval and analysis. Messages received by the devicemay also be collected if the device includes a transceiver.

The device 160 is assigned a unique identification code (UUID) and willgenerally broadcast at periodic intervals as programmed by thedeveloper. Broadcasts may be made using a ceramic antenna, a loopantenna, a whip antenna, a patch antenna, or a dipole antenna selectedfor low energy consumption such that the antenna is disposed inradiolucent battery housing.

The 160 unit is connected to one or more sensors 166, or any number ofsensors. Exemplary sensors sense environmental and physical parametersexperienced by the radiobeacon, including and not limited totemperature, light intensity, smoke, voltage, sound, motion,displacement, acceleration, humidity, pressure, radiation, button-pressevent, compass direction, or to report daylight levels, traffic levels,noise levels, NOX levels, and unusual noises such as gunshots or sirens,or self-reporting, such as reporting a low battery threshold level,other stimulus, sensor data, or environmental parameters, withoutlimitation thereto. In some embodiments, a sensor is a combinedmulti-axis motion sensor and temperature sensor. In one embodiment, thesensor has an accelerometer, a gyroscope, and a magnetometer for eachaxis. The information or “sensor data” output by the multi-axis motionsensor enables the receiver (i.e., a host device such as a smartphone)to monitor and track the battery (which is radiotagged by a radiobeacon)as it moves from one location to another. Alternatively, thebattery:beacon may include a GPS-based location sensor. The motion ofthe device can be monitored continuously by a cloud host server 500 aslong as the receiver is close enough to be in wireless contact with thesensor package on board or alternatively with a radiobeacon in wirelesscontact with the beacon. As an alternative, the information may bestored in a memory in the device and accessed later.

Some embodiments of the battery:beacon combination of the invention arerechargeable batteries that may be recharged via an inductive charger.Wireless chargers, also known as induction chargers, typically place onecoil in a charging device or pad that is connected to an AC powersource. Battery top off controls and discharge controls are known in theart and may be implemented where warranted.

In one application, the sensor is a low battery voltage sensor. FIG. 16Ashows how voltage monitoring can be used to schedule battery changesbefore a smoke alarm fails. The beacon sensor is a voltage monitor 166and is configured to detect a low voltage condition (termed here a“pre-alarm threshold”, 167) at a voltage that is slightly higher thanthe “replace battery” alarm threshold (168, set in the monitoringcircuit of the smoke alarm) and to actuate a radiobeacon signal that isdetected by a compatible hub, by a cellphone, or by another mobilecomputing machine when in proximity to the radiobeacon and whenconfigured with compatible software or firmware. Radio pulses areemitted intermittently and are detected by a device in proximity to theradiobeacon. Because this applies to local private clusters, using amobile device to detect the radio pulses will result in a successfulunidirectional transmission of the “pre-alarm” alert data at any timethat the end user is in proximity to the radiobeacon. The sensor packagemay also include a photosensor and code sufficient to ensure that thepre-alarm notification occurs during morning hours. A motion sensor maybe used to route the pre-alarm notification to a remote receiver via acloud host, such as when no one is home.

FIG. 16B is a schematic view of multiple smoke alarms (SAM) deployed ina household network and system for monitoring multiple batteries in thenetwork. This plan view of a household 170 contains multiple beaconsassociated with personal possessions or particular locations, where theexemplary beacons are enabled to monitor household conditions and notifyan owner of any adverse conditions. Some beacons are used to tagpersonal items such as a wallet, car keys, and backpack. Other beaconsare used to detect motion, such as of a backdoor swinging open or a carentering a garage. Yet other beacons are used to report a roomtemperature or temperature in the refrigerator or a smoke alarm batteryvoltage. One beacon is attached to the family dog and reports motion andposition of the dog. Thus, this deployment of beacons represents aconstellation of sensors having multiple complementary uses, all ofwhich are accessible to the owner as organizational aides. While thesmoke alarms retain their existing functions, the battery:beacon in eachsmoke alarm extends the functionality by providing an early warning of adepleted battery condition during daylight hours, and can even include areminder when the smart phone next senses it is in a supermarket. Thusdata management in the user's life becomes a useful tool for timesavingsand problem solving and may also improve quality of life, either in anoffice setting, a neighborhood, or as shown here in a household.

In preferred methods of use, the deployment of beacons may triggernotifications or actions depending on location, particularly in thecontext of indoor navigation where proximity of a host receiver is knownrelative to a cluster of beacons. In one example, a user enters a roomhaving a beacon, the user's smart phone detects the beacon and receivesassociated temperature data. Room temperature is detected as low. So theapplication can push a notification to the receiver device, or code inthe application in the receiver can include instructions to turn up theheat to a pre-defined comfort level and to turn on the lights or an MP3music track preference in a compatible device, for example. The receivercan identify the user's location from the beacon and can broadcast thisinformation to a cloud service if desired, so as to obtain other specialservices. A substantial body of literature on cloud-mediated services isknown in the art, but a simple beacon-mediated trigger or notificationsystem has been needed to simplify and improve delivery of services. Byoverloading contextual data on the communications protocol, substantialimprovement is achieved and is an advance in the art.

As described elsewhere [U.S. Provisional Pat. Appl. No. 62/175,141 filed12 Jun. 2015 titled “Devices And Network Architecture For ImprovedRadiobeacon Mediated Data Context Sensing”], the sensor data, includinginput stimuli generally, is overloaded into the frames of a standardizedbeacon transmission and parsimoniously broadcast at defined intervals.The data may be read by a compatible portable device such as asmartphone in proximity to the household, or may be uploaded from a hostdevice or other computing device with cloud access, so that the data andany accompanying notifications can be downloaded remotely or accessedthrough a browser.

FIG. 17A depicts data reporting from smoke alarms (SAMs: 181 a, 181 b,181 c) in a local private network 180 a with two smart devices 10, 10 aand a cloud-based administrative server 500. This represents a localprivate cluster having a primary receiver 10, a remote receiver 10 a,and a network connection to the internet. Three smoke alarm monitors(SAM1, SAM2, SAM3) are shown. Each battery:beacon monitor associatedwith a smoke alarm will emit a unidirectional radio pulse if the batteryweakens below a pre-alarm threshold as shown in FIG. 16A. The radiopulses are encoded with a unique identifier and when detected by acompatible computing device, the location of the battery in need ofreplacement is readily determined. In turn, a computing device inreceipt of the radio pulse may be used to propagate an alarmannunciation to a larger network, such as the Internet, as representedhere by a cloud 500, or a local area network or wide area network ifdesired. Similar local networks can be constructed for other types ofsensors, where each sensor is operatively in communication with anencoder and radiobeacon circuit enclosed in a removable battery 1.

FIG. 17B depicts data reporting in a network 180 b directed through ahub 188 to a cloud-based administrative server 500. The data may beshared via wireless connections with multiple smart devices and personalcomputers (10, 189 a, 189 b), for example. For illustration, three smokealarms (182, 183, 184) are assumed to be distributed in a structure suchas the household floorplan shown in FIG. 16B. In this instance, adedicated hub 188 may be used to monitor the smoke alarms, which areeach given a nickname, a location, and tabulated in a record of alook-up table along with the UUID of each battery:beacon combinationassociated with each smoke alarm. The hub is configured to listen foremissions from any of the radiobeacons listed for monitoring, and mayalso include other functions such as a capacity to make wirelesstransmissions to a computing machine or a capacity to monitor andcontrol other remote device's in the user's local private cluster, inshort the hub serves to manage the user's “Cloud of Things”. The hub maycontact the internet cloud 500 directly or may be routed through anyeffective portal as set up by the user. Once on the Internet, formatteddata in XML or HTTP code for example may be displayed, tabulated,stored, or otherwise processed on a variety of remote devices, such asother computers of a network. Further details of the hub technology aredisclosed in US Pat. Publ. No. 2015/0356393, entitled TRACKING DEVICE toDaoura; US Pat. Publ. No. 2015/0356861 titled TRACKING DEVICE SYSTEM toDaoura; and, US Pat. Publ. No. 2015/0356862 titled TRACKING DEVICESYSTEM to Daoura which are co-owned and unpublished at the time of thisfiling. These patent documents are incorporated in full herein byreference for all their teachings. Based on pre-programmed rules,notifications will be sent to designated smart devices by the cloudserver, each notification describing the nickname, location, and batterystatus of the affected smoke alarm.

FIG. 18 depicts a method of using the network to issue notifications ifan adverse condition such as a failing battery in a smoke alarm isdetected. The method consists of a setup subroutine and a monitoringsubroutine. FIG. 18 is a block diagram of a method, here embodied as anapplication as may be installed in a cellphone, hub or computing devicehaving a compatible radio receiver such as a Bluetooth device. Theapplication is configured to detect RF pulses 191 within the range oftransmission from a radiobeacon 50 a, and is programmed by the user toassociate the unique identifier (UUID) signal of the radiobeacontransmission with a particular location of a smoke alarm battery 1 beingmonitored.

In a first step 192 of SETUP, the radiobeacon is actuated and thereceiver is alerted to find the pulse emission 191. The receiver willthen show 193 the user a table in graphical format and invite the userto enter a location and a nickname to be associated with the newlydetected pulse emission, which has a unique identifier (UUID). Thelook-up table is then saved 194 in the smart device and can be sharedwith other smart devices having the program. The pulse transmissionautomatically ends after a brief setup window, but when next detected bythe device, the graphical display will indicate the location assigned tothat particular radiobeacon. The receiver includes computationalcapability to broadcast a notification to a network such as an Internetwith a message to a user summarizing the alert notification and thelocation and the server will monitor to be sure that the alarmnotification is cleared. To keep things simple, the user has only toremember that the “kitchen smoke alarm” refers to his house and is oneof his cluster of things that he monitors for a depleted batterypre-alarm. The alarm notification will automatically cleared and resetwhen the battery is replaced.

More generally, the invention is embodied in an apparatus for monitoringany compatible remote battery, which comprises: a) a folded or flexibleprinted circuit board with electrical contacts configured to be insertedinside a disposable battery selected from a 9V cell, an AA cell an AAAcell, a coin cell, or other battery such as tool-specific rechargeablebattery, during manufacture; b) a voltage monitor or comparator circuitin electrical contact with said electrical contacts, wherein saidvoltage monitor or comparator is configured for detecting a depletedbattery condition; c) a low energy radiobeacon subcircuit in electricalcontact with said electrical contacts, wherein said radiobeaconsubcircuit comprises an RF pulse signal generator for generating RFpulses or signals on a plurality of preset channels in an ISM frequencyrange of about 2.4 to 2.5 GHz or about 5.1 to 5.8 GHz, a clock forgenerating said RF pulses at a preset duration when said depletedbattery condition is detected; d) a low power antenna for emitting saidRF pulses or signals, and, e) a radio receiver 10 for detecting said RFpulses or signal, said radio receiver comprising a control apparatus orcomputing machine and programmable instructions for coupling said RFpulses to a location-specific display or broadcast. Thelocation-specific display or broadcast is formatted to indicate the kindof battery monitor and the location of the battery being monitored; thusby way of illustration, a battery powered smoke alarm may be identifiedas in need of battery replacement when an RF pulse from the batterymonitor is detected on a remote computing device, the RF pulse or signalindicating a weak or depleted battery in the smoke alarm, for example.Similar systems find use for monitoring a variety of batteries invarious applications.

By way of example, FIG. 16B is a schematic floorplan view of a house; a“map” where each battery:beacon combination is associated (during setup)in a look-up table with a particular smoke alarm (SAM). Duringmonitoring (FIG. 18), as a battery weakens, the monitoring devicedetects 195 the RF pulse, identifies 196 signals related to thehousehold, identifies 197 the UUID in the lookup table, and if on thelist, prepares 198 a report that a depleted battery pre-alarm thresholdhas been crossed (see FIG. 16A), and broadcasts 199 an annunciationsignal to alert the user. The signal is encoded with an identifiersignal, so that upon detection by a proximate compatible computingdevice, an application run by the computing apparatus will generate agraphical display indicating the location of the weak battery so that itmay be replaced. A user encountering the pre-alarm notification hassufficient time to replace the battery before the smoke alarm goes intoits “depleted battery alarm” state and begins making an audible beep(the conventional means for alerting a user of a low battery).Advantageously, no bidirectional data transmission is needed to achievethis simple synergy of timely information and user notification. Thehost device has the option of forwarding the data and report to acloud-based subscription service for follow-up. Users may also receivenotices at close of the workday tasking them with an errand to drop bythe store and buy a battery. Even better, because the battery:beacondevices at home are also registered in the look-up table on the user'sprivate network, the user can be reminded how many of the right sizebatteries are at home already and what their condition is, possiblyavoiding that trip to the store.

FIG. 19 is a cutaway view showing a toy teddy bear 320 equipped with abattery:beacon combination 1 of the invention. When installed in theteddy bear's belly, the battery, which operates a sound generator,triggers a vocalization whenever accelerometer motion is sensed, forexample, or when voices are detected. In one version, the toy'sradiobeacon, when motion is detected, triggers a smart device 10(sometimes in conjunction with cloud 500 resources) to actuate the toy'saudio controller 321. The toy learns by associating with new software“applications” for the battery:beacon combination as the child grows andbecomes more sophisticated (as more complex sensor packages areintegrated into the battery combination), for example the controller 321is actuated by motion and warmth sensors in the battery. In anotherinstance, the vocalizations become more or less complex depending on thelevel of the program version for operating the toy, as upgraded in thesmart device or by download to a memory in the battery. In yet anotherinstance, the toy may include a microphone and the cloud resources 500may include speech recognition so as to implement an interactivedialogue with a person holding the toy, the interactive level beingprogrammable on an interface in the smart device.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram of a tool and tool monitoring system, in thiscase a monitoring device 420 such as a blood glucose monitor used by adiabetic patient to maintain a steady blood sugar level. The tool isfitted with a battery:beacon combination 1 of the invention and becomesmore effectively integrated into the patient's daily routine by use ofan application (resident in a home network as here, or the patient'ssmart phone 10 for example) that responds to messages from theradiobeacon. By using the glucose monitor, motion is detected in thebattery sensor package, such as a motion detector mounted on a PCBinside the battery housing and powered from the battery power cell. Themotion sensor output is encoded in a message and sent at a standardlocal area, low energy broadcast frequency, where it is picked up by thehousehold local network administered out of a central hub in thekitchen, for example. Using the unique identifier in the message, thehub controller determines that the glucose monitoring tool was used, andmakes a record of the time, 10 AM for example. If subsequently, no testresult is entered in the patients log file (administered on the homenetwork), the hub will send a notification to the patient to ensure thatthe report is updated. In the opposite situation, in which no activityor motion of the glucose monitoring tool is detected at 5 PM, the hubrecognizes this as a more potentially serious situation, and willescalate notifications until a confirmation is received that the testingis being attended to. In this instance, the smart device or hub iskeeping time, the radiobeacon need not. The radiobeacon merely sends amessage when it senses an acceleration or motion consistent with use ofthe tool, and the host network does the rest. Time is indicated by acircle with a clockwise arrow.

A variety of other conditions are associated with the need for frequentattention, such as the need to take particular medications regularly, sothe system can include a sensor in any battery that is associated with amedication (even as simple as a penlight battery strapped to amedication bottle), and the system will remember to verify that themedication was taken, even if the patient entirely forgets. Thebattery:beacon also serves to locate the medication bottle if it ismisplaced by virtue of its tracking and proximity locating system asdescribed in U.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/301,236filed 10 Jun. 2014 titled “Tracking Device System”, which is co-assignedand co-owned, and is incorporated here by reference in full for all thatit teaches.

FIG. 21A is an exploded view of a second embodiment of the invention,depicting a clip-on battery monitor in piggyback electrical contact witha disposable pen cell. FIGS. 21B, 21C and 21D provide top, side and endviews of the clip-on device that operates in parallel with an externalcircuit or load. Depicted are a beacon clip or applique 200 in piggybackelectrical contact with a disposable pen cell 3. Chip 202 is configuredas a controller to monitor voltage, make timely RF signals, and to storea simple program instruction set in on-board EEPROM. The form factorchosen here is acceptable for AA and AAA batteries, illustrating theversatility of the inventive folded or flexible PCB battery monitoringdevices. In this view, the battery is inserted or attached betweenthrough-contacts (203 a, 203 b) provided at either end of the device. Asshown, device body 210 is provided with sufficient rigidity and a levelof springiness that contacts may be “clipped” onto the ends of thebattery, but alternatively, flexible contacts may be formed of a stickyelectro-conductive material so as to adhere to the battery end poles.Thin fold-down foil tabs may also be used to make an electricalconnection between the PCB and the battery poles. Similarly, thin tabsof flexible PCB material, for example, are provided with full-thicknesselectrically conductive end piece through-contacts (203 a, 203 b) so asto allow the end user to form Voltaic piles by stacking the batteriesend to end, as is often needed to sum the voltages of multiplebatteries, while providing one battery in the stack with radiobeaconcapability and antenna 204. When used in a series circuit, monitoringany one battery is indicative of the condition of all the batteries inthe series voltaic pile.

Similarly, when purchasing batteries in larger units by lot, a batterymonitor affixed to any one battery of the lot is generallyrepresentative of the condition of all the batteries. Thus the user maymonitor battery quality of many batteries simply and effectively with asingle battery monitoring system of the invention. This attachabledevice readily converts any battery to a smart battery and is re-usable.

FIG. 22A is a top view of a second on-board battery:beacon monitor 211for use with disposable battery cells; in this case for use withstandard 9V cells. FIG. 22A depicts a clip-on battery monitor inpiggyback electrical contact with a disposable 9V battery. Chip 212 isconfigured as a controller to monitor voltage, make timely RF signals,and to store a simple program instruction set in on-board EEPROM orother non-volatile memory such as Z-RAM. FIGS. 22B and 22C provide sideand end views of the clip-on device that operates in parallel with anexternal circuit or load. The advantage of this device is that it may beretrofitted on existing batteries where the case dimensions allow,converting dumb disposable batteries into smart members of an IoT localcluster with essentially no effort and minimal expense. Shown is afolded or flexible PCB with electrical contacts to the battery poles, aradiobeacon chip with solid state RF oscillator and supporting voltagemonitoring circuitry, and an antenna 214. Also shown are connectors 203a and 203 b that clip over the topside poles of a conventional 9Vbattery.

The contacts to the battery poles are interference fit when installingthe battery monitor on a 9V battery so as to ensure electrical contactwith both poles is made. The wire leads of the smoke alarm are typicallythen pressed onto the poles: further ensuring a solid contact. A quickfunctional test during setup is performed to validate the installation.Circuits may be designed that require a defined polarity; in thisinstance the contacts are tabbed so that the installation cannot beinadvertently reversed and a diode is used to protect the circuitry incase it is forced onto the poles in reverse polarity.

The radio antenna 214 is disposed on an outside surface of the clip-onbody 211 a and is not in direct contact with the wall of the battery.Batteries are typically housed in paramagnetic metal sheaths that couldinterfere with radio transmission if the antenna is contacted to thesheath. However, the form factor of the piggyback battery monitor mayinclude a cylindrical or semi-cylindrical wall or backbone strip so asto reduce clearances around the battery/clip-on combination. Batterymonitor clip-ons having the capacity to closely conform to the shape ofthe battery they are to monitor is an advance in the art and a part ofthe invention. While a loop antenna is shown for illustration, dipoleantennas, ceramic antennas, whip antennas, and other antenna types mayalso be used.

FIG. 23 is a schematic showing a preferred embodiment of abattery:beacon combination 220 in which battery recharge is included andthe radiobeacon is a transceiver capable of bidirectional radiocommunication 221. FIG. 23 shows the component circuitry of a preferreddevice, including a Battery Control Circuit and local area, low energyTransCeiver (BCC:LALETC) core device 222. The core device 223 includes aceramic antenna serving as part of an on-board transceiver for sendingand receiving information signals and control signals. The core devicealso includes a microprocessor, read only memory for storing programinstructions and random access memory sufficient to enable the coredevice control the other components on the battery:beacon, includingbattery management functions such as circuit overload, charging, andfuel gauge functions. In a further embodiment, a permanent memory deviceis added to the device to record battery use history and any sensordata.

The core device 222 is assigned a unique identification code (UUID)known to the user's local network and local cluster. The core devicebroadcasts a pulsed radio message with the code at periodic intervals.The maximum range of the local area, low energy radio transmissions 221is approximately 300 feet. In this embodiment, broadcasts are made usinga ceramic antenna 223. The ceramic antenna saves space. A typicalceramic antenna may take up only 20% of the space occupied by a patch ordipole antenna, thereby contributing to the overall small size of beaconcircuit in the battery.

The core device 222 controls a speaker 224 and a light emitting diode(LED) 225. The speaker 224 and the LED 225 provide alarms or audibleresponses for the tracking device 10 and assist in physically locatingthe device during a search, such as when the device is missing and is ina jacket pocket. The device housing 226 is thin enough to allow light topass through and the sound is easily located. In alternate embodiments aclear, colored, or highly translucent “window” is provided in the coverabove the LED 225 to aid in searches after dark.

The core device 220 is connected to one or more sensors 51, 52 or anynumber of sensors 53. The sensors detect and report one or more physicalparameters experienced by the tracking device 220, including but notlimited to switch status, displacement, motion, acceleration,electromagnetic radiation, radioactivity, temperature, sound, pressureand other physical parameters, for example. In some embodiments, asensor 53 is a combined 9-axis motion sensor and temperature sensor. Thesensor 53 has an accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer for eachaxis. The information output by the 9-axis sensor enables the receiverto track the motion of the tracking device from one location to anotherlocation. The motion of the tracking device can be monitoredcontinuously as long as one or more receivers are close enough tocapture, record and report the motion output information of the 9-axissensor 53 to a cloud server. As an alternative, the information may bestored in the memory for later upload.

A multi-function button 227 is operable to perform one of more functionsdescribed in more detail below. The single button 227 on the trackingdevice 220 and one or more control programs resident on a monitoring 10device (for method see FIG. 19) operate together to set one or morealarms, contextual triggers, and remotely control operations of thesmart device 10 or other remote machine 200 or 300. Those skilled in theart will grasp that a smart device may be any electronic device withprocessor, memory and communication ability including and not limited toa smartphone, a desktop computer, a laptop or notebook computer, atablet computer, a personal digital assistant, or any equivalent devicethat can store and hold programs and data, execute programs, receiveand/or transmit information and commands via wired or wireless channelsof communication, but may also include machines in general having asmart interface and some capacity to make computations, store andretrieve data, and report status. The multi-function button 227 may havefewer positions than a keypad, but may be linked to contextual valuessuch that more complex truth tables can be communicated, such as “DARK”(from a photocell) plus button switch OPEN=flashlight on, but “LIGHT”plus button switch OPEN=speaker on.

In some embodiments the units are equipped with batteries that may bewirelessly recharged with inductive or solar powered chargers. Wirelesschargers 228, also known as induction chargers, typically place one coil228 a in a charging device or pad that is connected to an AC powersource and another (receiver, 229) coil 229 a inside the device with arechargeable battery.

Also shown in FIG. 23, a transmitter module 228 a has a transmitter coil228 b that produces a time-varying electro-magnetic field that iscoupled to a receiver coil 229 b of a receiver module 229 a on thedevice circuit board. The receiver module 229 a also includes circuitry230 to regulate and convert voltage and to convert AC current to DCcurrent if needed. The core device 222 controls operations of thereceiver module 229 a and turns it on and off to recharge the battery 56as needed. Inductive transmitter and receiver modules are available froma number of integrated device manufacturers.

Other embodiments of the invention may have wired rechargers. These arewell known devices and may be incorporated into tracking devices 220 byproviding a suitable port (not shown) to receive power from an externalpower source. However, such external ports provide openings in the coverthrough which water or other fluids may gain entry to the cavity holdingthe PCB 12 and its component circuitry.

Still other embodiments may have solar recharging systems 240. One suchsolar recharging system has one or more solar cells located onrespective covers of the housing 226 and connected to a regulator 230and battery fuel gauge circuit in the core chip 222 and to therechargeable battery 56. The core device 222 uses the solar current toknow whether the tracking device is in available light or not. Solarcells have a dual role by acting as light sensors. This allowsflexibility in configuring notifications to the user by pairing sensordata and other contextual data to the presence or absence of light. Theamount of current generated by the solar cells is indicative of theintensity of the light falling on the beacon sensor. This allows furtherflexibility by pairing any other sensed parameter to the presence orabsence of light. The amount of current generated by the solar cells 240indicates the intensity of light received by the tracking device 220.

Other embodiments of the tracking device have circuitry 250 forharvesting RF power to charge the battery 56 including MHz, GHz andterahertz emissions. A rectenna is integration of antenna and rectifier,as reflected by the name. The device can be used to convert RF energy toelectrical energy. At the DC output side there is a DC pass filter toattenuate high order harmonics generated in rectification. Otherembodiments of the battery monitor device have circuitry for harvestinglocal RF emissions for power to charge a capacitor that operates theradiobeacon pulse timer and emission circuitry. Athttp://www.hindawi.com/journals/apec/2010/591640/ there is described anRF harvester 250 having a GMS antenna, one or more resonant circuits,boosters, peak detectors and an adder. The circuitry contains passivecomponents and is designed to have tuned circuits at known frequenciesof cell phone towers (960 MHz) and Bluetooth devices (2.4 and.or 5 GHzISM bands). The boosters are Villard voltage multipliers. Reported testresults show the RF harvester located within 500 meters of a cell towerwas capable of generating 0.16 microWatt and successfully operated acalculator and a light emitting diode.

A combination battery:beacon combination and battery charger relying onRF power harvesting is also contemplated. Related advances includeDickson cascade diode capacitor circuits, charge pumps, Karthaus-Fischercascade voltage doublers and rectantennas known in the art. Becausethese RF sources operate continuously, potentially the tracker beaconscan operate continuously in urban areas without being plugged in for arecharge.

Other embodiments of the invention may have wired rechargers. These arewell-known devices and may be incorporated into beacon devices of theinvention by providing a suitable port (not shown) to receive power froman external power supply. However, such external ports provide openingsin the housing that are less desirable and hence indirect charging meansare preferred. The rechargeable batteries may be kept topped up forextended emergencies and their condition may be monitored via smartdevice 10.

Integrated circuits may also include battery control circuits (BCC). ABCC may monitor the state of the battery as represented by variousitems, such as: [voltage: total voltage, voltage of periodic taps, orvoltages of individual cells; temperature: average temperature, ortemperatures of individual cells; state of charge (SOC), or depth ofdischarge (DOD) to indicate the charge level of the battery state ofhealth (SOH), a variously-defined measurement of the overall conditionof the battery, and current: current in or out of the battery]. Theseindices are increasingly important as more batteries become rechargeableand also serve to address safety issues that dog the industry.

FIG. 24 is a view of a device 240 with radiobeacon circuit 250 in abattery housing 241. The battery is generally selected from thosecommonly used as disposable power supplies, such as double-A, triple-A,9V, pen cell, and so forth. The voltaic pile 56 is connected in parallelto a radiobeacon circuit centered on a processor 50 and is electricallyattachable to a load. However, the load may be cut off from the anode byswitch 242, which is controlled by the processor 50, typically involvinglocal or cloud-based radio access and control via antenna 55. Theantenna may be built into the housing 241 or applied in layers on theoutside of the housing and covered with a radiolucent jacket.

Also shown is a smart device in radio communication with the processor50 of the radiobeacon circuit. The smart device is provided with programinstructions that supply a graphical user interface for operating switch242 remotely. The program instructions may also be preset to respond tosensor data received by processor 50 from sensors S₁, S2 ₂, . . . S_(N)(51, 52, 53). Sensors may include battery monitoring sensors, but alsovoltage sensors, photocells, motion sensors, audio sensors, voicedigital signal discrimination sensors (DSP), smoke sensors, proximitysensors, and so forth. The smart device is typically provided with theapplication via a distribution service, such as Google Play and thelike. In some instances, an administrative server is used to build anetwork that provides additional services such as television programinformation, locations of individuals as described in U.S. Pat. No.9,392,404, incorporated here in full by reference.

Analogously to as earlier described with respect to FIG. 5A, and as canbe seen here, a solid state processor 50 may be supplied to control mostof the circuits shown here. An ASIC having the needed functionalitiesfor bluetoothed radiobeacon operation is used. The transmitter/encodermay be a module and powers an antenna 55 in the battery housing wall oron the PCB. The radiobeacon circuit 250 takes power from the power cell56 that is to be monitored and operated, such that circuit 250 is wiredin parallel with the load (LOAD). The “load” is defined by an appliancereceiving power from the battery. Generally, these are portable batterypowered machines and electronics such as toys, remote control units,walkie-talkies, battery-powered lanterns, smoke alarms, radios and soundboxes, drones, flashlights, Christmas decorations, and so forth that cannow be activated or inactivated remotely using the radiobeacon in thebattery. Using miniaturized solid state circuits, sophisticated batteryfunctions are performed so as to make their use in DC circuits morepopular and add value to the battery as a rechargeable control unit.Within the battery:beacon combination 240, a battery health monitoringcircuit may be modularized as indicated here by a series of sensormodules S₁, S₂, . . . S_(N), (51, 52, 53) where S₁ may be a low voltagethreshold detector, S₂ may be a thermal overload detector, and S_(N) maybe motion sensor, for example. Alternatively, some of the sensors may beintegrated into the chip. For example, by including a GPS sensor, thetransmission of the radiobeacon may include location-specificinformation that can be directed to local fire responders through aproximate user WWAN device or hub to a cloud server that never sleeps.The chip 50 is set up to encode the sensor data content in a formattedmessage and to generate a broadcast according to a trigger or to a clockschedule. Subcircuit 257 may be an inductive recharger for example.

Effectors may also be associated with the chip. Control line 241connects to a solid state switch 242. The switch is controlled by theprocessor and may be used to connect and disconnect power from the anodeof the battery. When disconnected from power at switch 242, batterypower is effectively “killed” and cannot power the load. The radiobeaconcircuit is still powered, but the supply of electrons to the exterioranode on the housing is blocked at the switch 242. It is believed thatthis can prevent accidental battery drain in toys for example, when lackof motion is treated as a signal to turn the toy off.

Switch 242 has two states, an open switch state in which the battery isnot electrically connected to the load, and a closed switch state, inwhich the battery is electrically connected to the load. The selectionof the state of the switch is made via smart device 255 as describedbelow.

This simplified block view includes a local area, low energy core device50. The core device includes a transmitter for sending radio signals andmay also be enabled for sending control signals to other devices in alocal cluster. Optionally, the core device may be specified to include atransceiver for receiving data and control commands from a master hostdevice. The core device generally includes a microcontroller, read onlymemory (ROM) supplied with a programmed instruction set, random accessmemory (RAM) sufficient to support rudimentary control, or may beprovided with firmware sufficient for basic functions. In currentpractice, integrated devices that support Bluetooth local area, lowenergy radiobeacon transmission protocols (BTLE) are used.

FIG. 25 is a flow chart describing the operations involved in a methodof using a smart battery with internal kill switch, a processor,supporting logic circuitry, and low energy radioset. The battery isinstalled in an appliance in place of a conventional battery. Anapplication is copied to, installed and executed in a smart device,first going through a setup menu to identify the radioset in the batteryby a digital ID and then to name the battery a “nickname” in a userinterface. The application is then accessible via an icon on the usermenu and displays a virtual button switch that will send a command tothe battery. The first command may be to disconnect the battery from itsload (an appliance, for example); the second command may be to restorethe battery circuit that powers the load. This can be accomplished witha FET transistor wired to a processor in the battery. The batteryprocessor is always on, but requires only a small resting current andwill wake up when a command directed at the radioset ID is received. Theprocessor can then open or close the transistor to turn off or turn onpower to the appliance. Optionally, the smart battery will containsensors that monitor battery function, and the processor can open thekill switch if a serious condition develops that makes disabling thebattery important. The processor can also send an alert to the smartdevice and provide notifications in the form of a status report is theuser so chooses. In one example if its usefulness, the smart device canbe used to turn off the low battery audio alert that is sounded by smokedetectors when the battery is weak. Being able to turn the alarm off fora period of time allows the user to schedule a convenient hour toreplace the battery. And in a preferred embodiment, the processor willnotify the user of the low battery condition before the smoke detectorgoes into alarm. Similarly, the processor can notify the user if thebattery is being drained by an actual smoke alarm that indicates smoke.The user can quickly consult a table of smoke alarms in a structure, orreceive a notification, as to the location of the smoke detector inalarm, speeding an effective response. Thus giving “nicknames” to theappliances having smart batteries opens up a whole new vista ininteracting with a home network, allowing the user to develop a familiarlanguage used by the battery to keep the user up to date about not onlybattery condition, but also any sensor data that the battery is enabledto provide.

In more detail, the modified battery is supplied (570) with anapplication (571) that installs onto a smart device, termed here a“master host device”. The battery is then loaded into an appliance (572)where it is needed. The application listens for a bluetoothed signalfrom the battery, records the UUID of the broadcast, and allows theowner of the smart device to turn on or off the battery current to aload (573) if desired, or turn on the battery (574). The concept of“turning on” a battery when needed has not generally been recognized buthas value in increasing battery life by preventing leakage current. Thusa battery-powered appliance becomes supplied with a switch, the kind ofswitch that just like a wall switch, can be toggled to turn on or turnoff the light of a lantern, for example. Generally, a user interface isprovided that tabulates the UUID of one or more of the batteries andtheir locations or functions, and allows the user to select one or moreto activated or inactivated. A daily or weekly schedule may also beprogrammable, including options for vacation shutdown, and so forth.Because power to the processor of the radiobeacon is not affected byshutdown of power to the load, the battery radio remains fullyoperational can be put in sleep mode when inactive and woken up at anytime by a ping from a master host device. Similarly, the battery willbroadcast a bluetoothed message to the host device on a regular scheduleso that the owner can monitor use, condition of the battery, and alsoquickly find the appliance (if misplaced) by monitoring radio signalstrength (the “hot or cold” approach) or by ordering the battery to emita programmable audio such as a gong or a voice that repeats and leadsthe user to its location. And in a preferred application, the batterycan be supplied with sensors that provide input for automated features(575) such as a thermostat or an outdoor lamp.

FIG. 26A is a perspective view of a radiojacket that includes aprocessor, executable instructions, a radioset and a kill switch. Bysupplying a radiojacket with the same features as a smart battery,existing batteries can be retrofitted with smart features such as thecapacity to interact with the IoT. The body is formed as a thin sleeve.An end cap covers the cathode of a AA battery. In this realization of aretrofit smart radioset, the conventional battery slides into theradiojacket through a hole in the anode end of the jacket. Thus theframe is a ring (590) as represented in FIG. 26E. A thin but flexiblesticky lead is provided to establish an electrical connection betweenthe battery anode and the processor. The sticky lead may be re-used butis stiff enough to hold the battery in place and may be for example athin strip of copper cut to the shape (592) as shown.

The radiojacket holds a conventional battery (3) in a battery sleeve(264). FIG. 26B shows how the battery is seated in the radiojacket. Acentral cavity (262) is provided and is configured so that the batteryfits in the pocket while establishing electrical continuity between thepoles of the battery and two contacts (270 a, 270 b), one on a cap ateach end of the radiojacket. The contacts extend through the end caps(264 a, 264 b). FIG. 26C is a view of a radiojacket in which the batterysleeve is empty. FIG. 26D is a cutaway schematic showing a circuit builtinto the radiojacket to connect the cathode (580) and anode through akill switch (582) under control of a radioset and processor (584). Onelead (581) extends from an internal contact with the cathode, throughthe kill switch, and back to the cathodic end of the jacket to providepower to the external contact when the kill switch is closed. Also shownis a second lead (592) connecting the base of the battery to thesupporting circuitry thus enabling a continuous power supply to theelectronics even when the kill switch is off. An antenna (586) isapplied on an external surface of the sleeve. FIG. 26E is an end view ofthe radiojacket.

FIGS. 27A and 27B summarize the structure of the kill switch and powercircuitry. A double-A battery (3) is shown in a radiojacket 260 suchthat the anode of the battery connects to an external anode (here hardwired into the jacket) and the cathode of the battery is indirectlyconnected to an external contact 270 b. The battery contact at the anodeend is made initially at contact surface (270 c) and is embedded in thethin frame where an electrical lead to the collector of the kill switchoriginates. The kill switch return from the emitter connects to theexternal contact 270 b via a second lead that follows the surface of theend cap and folds down to connect to the kill switch and processor,completing the circuit so as to power the processor continuously.

This structure is a re-usable smart radiojacket for a battery. Itincludes a sleeve body with an anodic end and cathodic end, the cathodicend having a cathode end cap, the anodic end having an anodic end capand provision for supplying power from an anodic contact on radiojacketto processor 584, transceiver radioset, and supporting logic circuitry.Typically this is supplied by a micro chipset that is mounted on a stiffbut semi-cylindrical support matrix. The device is further characterizedby a kill switch having an input and an output, a first state in whichthe input is electrically connected through the switch to the output,and a second state in which the electrical contact to the output isbroken. The switch itself includes a is radio controllable switchselector configured to reversibly toggle the switch from the first stateto the second state by remote control as caused by a companionapplication installed on a smart device.

In more detail, the cathodic open circuit and conductive bypass is madeby inside contact (270 b, 270 d) for receiving power from the batteryand an outside contact (270 c, 270) for connecting to an externalappliance. Two leads extend, one each from the internal and externalcontacts, two a kill switch 582, such that power can pass across theinsulating space between the inside and outside contacts only by passingthrough the switch. And the switch is provided with a switch selectorthat is radio controlled via the processor 584 and radioset includingantenna 268.

The anodic lead 592 is electrically connected to the anode of thebattery and the processor with supporting circuitry so that theprocessor is always alert and can periodically send messages withoutbeing disabled by an open state of the kill switch. The circuits arepowered in parallel.

FIG. 28 illustrates a flow chart for using an insertable radiojacketonto a conventional battery and then using kill switch in theradiojacket to operate an appliance such as a television remotecontroller, either manually, automatically, or conditionally dependenton sensor readings from the radiojacket. Use of a low energy radiosetensures that the battery is not exhausted by its radiotransmissions. Theconventional battery is installed (710, 714) in an appliance with theradiojacket in place and covering the anodic and cathodic poles of thebattery. The device is operated using radio control (712). Aninstruction set, termed here an “application” is copied to, installedand executed in a smart device. The application offers a setup menu toidentify the radioset in the radiojacket by its digital ID and thenallows the user to name the radiojacket a “nickname” on a userinterface. Because the radiojacket is re-usable, the user has the optionof renaming the radiojacket according to any current function or placeit assumes. The application is accessible via an icon on the user menuand displays a virtual “button” switch that will send a command to theradiojacket. The first command may be to disconnect the battery (716)from its load (an appliance, for example); the second command may be torestore the closed switch that powers the load (718). This can beaccomplished with a transistor wired to a processor in the battery. Theprocessor may use flipflop logic and conditional gating to execute theuser commands. The battery processor is always on, but requires only asmall resting current and will wake up when a command directed at theradioset ID is received. The processor can then open or close thetransistor to turn off or turn on power to the appliance. Optionally,the radiojacket will also contain sensors (720) that monitor batteryfunction, and the processor can open the kill switch if a seriouscondition develops that makes disabling the battery important. Theprocessor can also send an alert to the smart device and providenotifications in the form of a status report is the user so chooses.

Various features, including the outdate of the battery, can be thesubject of the notifications. The radiojacket, for example, can beslipped onto an unused battery and will report to the smart device whenits expiration date nears or it has weakened below an acceptable level.In this way, batteries kept in emergency kits and the like can bemonitored and can be automatically inventoried and tested.

EXAMPLE 1

A smoke alarm supplied each with a 9V battery began to beep in the latehours of the night. A homeowner groggily got on a stool to replace thebattery and went back to bed, but a few hours later, the beep beganagain because the replacement battery was also depleted. Homeownerstypically lack the gear to test battery voltage and maintain stocks ofbatteries without inventory control. By installing a system of theinvention, battery monitoring and replacement may be scheduled at theconvenience of the homeowner.

EXAMPLE 2

All of us who have a battery-operated flashlight in the glovebox of acar will readily admit that at least once on a dark highway, theflashlight was useless because the batteries were dead or weak. Byinstalling a system of the invention, battery monitoring can beautomated to better ensure motorist safety. The current flow state ofthe battery can be set up to limit battery power leakage or to activatea battery on command. A sensor package includes a current sensor and aninstallation interface can be used to set up control and monitoring ofcurrent flow.

EXAMPLE 3

An emergency kit with a small portable radio was stored in the bedroomof a house, but in a large natural disaster, cellphone service wasjammed and the radio did not work because the batteries were dead. Byinstalling a system of the invention, battery monitoring can beautomated, saving needless worry.

EXAMPLE 4

A glucose monitor is supplied with a notification system of theinvention. The battery:beacon combination device is installed in andpowers the glucose monitor. When activity is noted, the deviceincrements a count and returns a flag to a processor. Under control ofthe processor, the beacon is activated and the activity is encoded fortransmission. Transmission results in actuation of a rules-basedapplication on a smart device or a server of a network. If regularactivity is not noted, such as a missed test, the smart device or serverwill issue a notification to a user.

Improvements may also be implemented by an application provider ornetwork operator that result in a query being issued to the glucosemonitor, such as over a wireless system, interrogating the monitor tosupply the last test result and the timestamp associated with the testresult, and result in a notification to a user or a caregiver if theresult is less than 70 mg % or greater than 160 mg %. Nuisance alarmcode may also be provided, such as contextual data indicating that abattery:beacon combination operatively associated with a diabetic needledevice has been actuated in the event the glucose level is moderatelyelevated and appropriate actions have been taken by the user.

EXAMPLE 5

A toy such as a teddybear 320 as shown in FIG. 19 is supplied to a childin a crib. The parent uses a disposable battery with motion sensorcombination in the toy to monitor child activity and to provide an alertif activity becomes excessive or ceases. For convenience, the motionsensor is in the battery. Contextual data may also be provided to add“smarts” to parental alerts, allowing the parent to assess the necessaryattention level and judge the nature or “cause” of a notification.Notifications may be based on a combination of motion data and acounter, so that duration may be reported in the notification alert aswell as a timestamp when the alert threshold was triggered.

The toy comes with an application that promotes interactions with thechild. In some instances, the application may be programmed into thebattery and operate in conjunction with programming in a master hostdevice such as a smart phone, home hub, or laptop. The toy bear mayinvite the child to hug it and make a rewarding sound via a voiceboxsound controller 321 (the load on the battery) if it is hugged asdetected by a motion sensor and may plead for more attention if nointeraction is detected by the battery-mounted motion sensor. In anotherinstance, an older child may be provided with a smart tablet and may beable to play hide-and-seek with the teddybear because the smart tabletwill display, hot or cold, whether the child is closer or farther fromthe radiobeacon in the battery. Interestingly, the teddybear may beinitially purchased with a relatively low level of interaction capacity,but by providing a battery:beacon combination having one or more sensorsand by downloading and installing an upgraded application into therechargeable battery, the teddybear may “grow” with the child. The toywill literally become smarter without the need to discard it and buy anew, better one. The battery may be kept for years instead of beingdisposed of, and may even be transferred to other toys or given othertasks that require a smart battery. The child or the parent can selectfrom a palette of games to play by pressing a multifunction button onthe battery before installing the battery.

In other uses, the battery may be placed in a remote control foroperating the toy, or for operating a television, and the parent canaccess and see a chart of data that indicates the child's activitylevels and interests, ensuring that the child's development is vigorousand active.

EXAMPLE 6

Sets of tools are needed for adults to complete their work, such asassembly or construction. Tracking these tools may be handled with aproximity detector that ensures they are returned to their storagestations between shifts. Similarly, the battery sensors may beconfigured to detect unusual vibrations or heating consistent with theneed for preventative maintenance. The battery may also provide acounter to measure total time in use, another indicator that may be usedto plan servicing based on the actual cumulative “duty cycle” of thetool. Advantageously, the radiobeacon also makes collecting the tool forservicing easy because the beacon signals where the tool is.

EXAMPLE 7

A battery:beacon combination essentially as drawn in FIG. 2 wasconstructed and tested. When operated in beacon mode with intermittentpulse transmission of ID and major and minor frames, reception waspatent using a compatible receiver, and the signal could be decoded atmore than 150 ft away. Further distance was achieved by stepping outsidea building through a heavy commercial door. Even in a noisy outdoorenvironment, signal reception was “five by five” and decoding waswithout error. In a noisy radio environment, sensitivity to a signal aslow as −5 Db-m was estimated. Power consumption is 5-6 uAmp in sleepmode; in “advertising mode” with simultaneous broadcast on threechannels, power draw increases to millisecond power spikes of up to15-20 mAmp. A “wake pin” is incorporated so that sleep mode is onlyinterrupted when active messaging is appropriate.

Scope of the Claims

Representative claims are filed with this application. The disclosureset forth herein of certain exemplary embodiments, including all text,drawings, annotations, and graphs, is sufficient to enable one ofordinary skill in the art to practice the invention. Variousalternatives, modifications and equivalents are possible, as willreadily occur to those skilled in the art in practice of the invention.The inventions, examples, and embodiments described herein are notlimited to particularly exemplified materials, methods, and/orstructures and various changes may be made in the size, shape, type,number and arrangement of parts described herein. All embodiments,alternatives, modifications and equivalents may be combined to providefurther embodiments of the present invention without departing from thetrue spirit and scope of the invention.

In general, in the following representative claims, the terms used inthe written description should not be construed to limit the claims tospecific embodiments described herein for illustration, but should beconstrued to include all possible embodiments, both specific andgeneric, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claimsare entitled. Accordingly, the claims are not limited in haec verba bythe disclosure.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

All of the U.S. Patents, U.S. Patent application publications, U.S.Patent applications, foreign patents, foreign patent applications andnon-patent publications referred to in this specification and relatedfilings are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for allpurposes.

1. A battery, comprising: a housing; a power terminal; a power celldisposed within the housing; a switch disposed within the housing andcoupled between the power cell and the power terminal; and a circuitdisposed within the housing and configured to receive a control signalfrom a source external to the housing and to control the switch inresponse to the control signal.